^BBtmB^ 

EX  LIBRIS 


I 

SABRINA 


SABRINA 

Being  a  Chronicle  of  the 

Life  of  the  Goddess 

of 

AMHERST  COLLEGE 


Recorded  by 

WINTHROP  H.  SMITH, 
Guardian  of  the  Class  of  1916 
HALVOB  R.  SEWABD  and  JOHN  G.  GIBSON,  2ND 
of  the  Class  of  1919 


Copyright,  1921,  by 

HALVOR  R.  SEWARD 

JOHN  G.  GIBSON,  2d 

WINTHROP  H.  SMITH 


987K19 


TO  AMHERST 

IN  WHOSE  LIFE  SABRINA  HAS  PLAYED 
SO  VITAL  AND  PICTURESQUE  A 
PART  WE  DEDICATE  THIS  BOOK. 


PREFACE 

THE  mystery,  the  romance  and  the  un- 
confirmed rumors  that  have  surrounded 
Sabrina  for  more  than  thirty  years  have 
built  up  a  tradition  unparalleled  in  the  history  of 
any  other  American  college.  The  customs  grow- 
ing up  around  the  Goddess  have  been  entirely 
spontaneous,  the  rivalry  between  Odd  and  Even 
classes  originated  naturally  and  grew  in  strength 
as  the  years  passed  by,  until  today  the  tradi- 
tion has  become  so  intense  and  meaningful  that 
the  mere  mention  of  Sabrina  is  sure  to  quicken 
the  pulse  of  every  Amherst  man. 

Some  twelve  years  ago,  Max  Shoop,  of  the 
class  of  nineteen  ten,  published  a  History  of 
Sabrina.  Up  till  then  Sabrina  had  been  the 
subject  of  considerable  speculation;  stories  of 
her  numerous  travels  and  startling  appearances 
had  been  handed  down  by  word  of  mouth,  and 
exaggeration,  purposeful  and  imaginative,  wove 
a  shroud  of  mystery  about  "our  fostering  divin- 
ity. "  There  were  those  who  even  doubted  the 
existence  of  the  statue.  Shoop  succeeded  in 
gathering  up  the  odds  and  ends  of  the  story  and 
presented  them  in  a  very  pleasing  and  construc- 
tive way. 

Since  the  publication  of  that  work  much  has 
taken  place.  Indeed,  the  most  momentous  hap- 


vi  PREFACE 

pening  in  the  recent  life  of  Sabrina  has  occurred, 
for  she  is  now  in  the  hands  of  the  Odd  Classes, 
after  twenty-nine  years  uninterrupted  tenure  by 
Even  Classmen. 

The  same  doubts  and  mystery  now  prevail  as 
did  before  Snoop's  book  was  written,  and  as 
there  have  been  many  requests  from  alumni  and 
undergraduates  for  an  account  of  the  last  ten 
years'  experiences,  we  have  made  an  attempt 
here  to  fill  this  need.  In  doing  so,  we  have  tried 
to  take  a  large  view  of  Sabrina,  and  have  treated 
the  tradition  as  an  integral  part  of  the  Spirit  of 
Amherstj  not  as  an  affair  of  Odd  or  Even  Classes 
only.  We  have  tried  to  present  an  impartial 
account,  giving  credit  where  credit  is  due. 

Believing  that  the  inclusion  of  a  complete 
history  would  best  serve  the  interest  of  the  reader, 
we  have  traced  the  adventures  of  Sabrina  from 
the  time  when  she  first  adorned  the  campus  to 
the  last  Sabrina  banquet. 

The  accounts  herein  contained  are  based  upon 
the  experiences  of  the  Sabrina  guardians  since 
nineteen  twelve,  and  of  our  contemporaries,  as 
related  to  us.  Acknowledgment  is  here  made 
to  Sydney  D.  Chamberlain,  Walter  McGay  and 
RosweU  P.  Young,  '14,  John  Atwater,  '15,  Philip 
H.  See  and  Jacob  P.  Estey,  '18,  David  S.  Soli- 
day  and  Morris  Bowman,  '19,  Kenneth  B.  Low 
and  Paul  C.  Phillips,  '21,  and  Rowell  S.  Schlei- 
cher,  '21,  for  their  interest  and  co-operation. 


EARLY  DAYS  ,.  ;    :;:v^K: 

SABRINA  was  given  to  Amherst  College  by 
Governor  Joel  Hayden  of  Massachusetts  in 
the  year  1857.  The  statue,  which  originally 
occupied  a  place  of  honor  upon  the  terrace  be- 
tween Old  North  College  and  the  Octagon,  was 
patterned  after  the  statue  of  a  nymph  which  is 
still  at  Shrewsbury,  England.     It  rested  upon  a 
circular  sandstone  base  on  the  front  of  which  was 
an  inscription. 

"Presented  by  Joel  Hayden 
of  Haydenville." 

Sabrina  remained  here  for  several  years  and 
enjoyed  comparative  peace  and  quiet.  The 
first  prank  which  was  played  upon  her  occurred 
a  few  years  after  her  presentation  to  the  college 
when  a  youth  arrayed  the  Goddess  in  divers  gar- 
ments stolen  from  a  nearby  girls  school.  Need- 
less to  say,  the  student  was  dealt  with  by  the 
faculty,  and  to  this  day  Sabrina's  fair  cheek 
bears  the  marks  of  the  student's  ill-timed 
vengeance. 

From  this  time  on  Sabrina  was  the  butt  of  the 
undergraduate  body.  She  was  whitewashed, 
indecorously  decorated,  and  often  anticipated  her 
future  career  by  frequent  changes  of  color. 


2  SABRINA 

;:  ;*The  '.first  .abduction  of  which  record  can  be 
f6tind*was:  c'bfn*mtted  by  the  class  of  '77.  After 
jaf^b^V^jourh  away  from  the  campus  she  ap- 
peared again  in  her  familiar  place.  As  yet  no 
feeling  of  class  proprietorship  had  grown  up 
around  the  statue,  but  many  were  the  humilia- 
tions Sabrina  suffered  at  the  hands  of  various 
jovial  blades.  She  was  first  used  as  a  distinctly 
class  affair  when  '80  placed  her  on  top  of  the 
Octagon  holding  a  rag  baby  labeled  "'81." 
Later  on  she  appeared  at  the  Class  Supper  of  '82 
where  she  occupied  the  seat  of  honor,  but  her 
exalted  position  was  soon  reversed,  for  the  spite- 
ful class  of  '83  immersed  her  deep  in  the  college 
well.  Thereafter  the  same  jest  was  repeated, 
usually  after  a  college  victory.  By  this  time, 
the  faculty  having  become  vitally  weary  of  the 
students'  rude  treatment  of  the  gift  to  the  college 
of  such  a  distinguished  man,  decided  to  put  an 
end  to  the  affair.  Then,  too,  her  appearance 
was  becoming  increasingly  unattractive.  Ac- 
cordingly, the  college  janitor  was  given  the  task 
of  removing  and  doing  away  with  the  statue. 

This  faithful  servant  of  the  college  could  not 
withstand  the  mute  appeal  of  the  Goddess  for 
mercy,  and  accordingly  hid  her  away  from  the 
prying  eyes  of  the  students  in  his  barn.  Here  it 
remained  for  two  years,  as  the  "tradition  of  the 
hidden  Goddess"  took  root. 


EARLY  DAYS  3 

As  new  men  came  to  college,  they  heard  the 
story  of  the  Goddess  and  two  men,  Duffey  and 
Ingalls,  of  the  class  of  '90,  hit  upon  the  idea  of 
resurrecting  Sabrina.  They  traced  the  history 
of  the  statue  with  great  care,  and  in  obedience  to 
rumor  that  the  college  janitor  still  had  her  in  his 
possession,  they  started  out  on  Sunday  night 
June  19,  1887  accompanied  by  Durgin,  Child  and 
Raymond  of  the  same  class  to  find  her.  After 
a  prolonged  search  of  the  janitor's  premises,  the 
statue  was  found  in  the  barn,  and  they  took  the 
Goddess  to  Guernsey's,  where  they  were  living, 
and  hid  her  away  in  the  cellar.  Ninety  at  this 
time  planned  to  reintroduce  Sabrina  to  the  col- 
lege with  an  appropriate  celebration,  but  this 
plan  had  been  discovered  by  its  rival  class  '89. 
The  result  of  the  attempt  to  hold  the  celebra- 
tion was  a  terrific  struggle  in  Chapel  Tower. 
Sabrina  did  not  appear  as  the  surprise  that  '90 
had  planned;  she  was  more  securely  hidden  in 
the  attic  of  Guernsey's  house. 

The  class  of  '90  now  decided  to  have  the 
Goddess  appear  at  their  Class  Banquet,  and 
plans  were  laid  accordingly.  Wells,  '91,  over- 
heard the  Sophomores  plotting,  and  immediately 
communicated  his  information  to  some  of  his 
friends,  and  they  planned  to  frustrate  '90's  de- 
signs. The  Even  Class  had  already  departed 
for  its  supper,  leaving  but  four  men  to  guard  the 


4  SABRINA 

guest  of  honor.  Wells  summoned  ten  men  to 
his  room,  among  whom  were  Morris,  Hamilton, 
Crosier,  Knight,  Ludington,  Hammond,  Wood- 
ruff and  Crocker.  These  men  stealthily  followed 
the  team  bearing  the  statue  as  it  moved  slowly 
up  towards  Chapel  from  Guernsey's.  Seizing 
an  advantageous  moment,  the  men  of  '91  sprang 
upon  the  equipage,  and  Sabrina  came  for  the 
first  time  into  the  possession  of  an  Odd  Class. 
She  was  promptly  spirited  away  and  rumor  has 
it  that  she  spent  that  summer  deep  beneath  the 
placid  waters  of  the  broad  Connecticut.  The 
following  poem  from  the  '91  Olio  aptly  describes 
the  foregoing  incident: 

The  summer  term  was  closing  fast, 
When  through  old  Amherst  village  passed 
The  Class  of  Ninety,  on  the  road 
To  the  depot  with  their  precious  load, 
Sabrina. 

For  now,  indeed,  'twas  their  intent 
To  add  to  joy  and  merriment 
By  taking,  their  festive  board  to  grace, 
The  maiden  with  the  pretty  face, 
Sabrina. 

This  fact  has  oft  come  to  our  ken, 
The  best  laid  plans  of  mice  and  men 
Do  fail.     And  this  was  just  the  case 
With  Ninety  and  that  form  of  grace, 
Sabrina. 


EARLY  DAYS 

For  to  the  Class  of  Ninety-One 
The  knowledge  of  their  plan  had  come, 
And  each  man  solemnly  declared 
"This  toast  to-night  shall  not  be  heard, 
Sabrina." 

So  when  Old  Guernsey,  in  his  cart, 
For  the  New  London  Northern  made  a  start 
With  that  fair  Goddess  snug  within, 
At  once  the  Freshman  howled  like  sin, 
"  Sabrina." 

"Deter  me  not,"  the  old  man  said, 
In  mortal  terror  for  his  head, 
"The  power  of  Ninety  is  great  and  wide," 
But  loud  a  clarion  voice  replied, 
"Sabrina." 

And  e'en  before  the  dear  old  man 
Had  really  grasped  their  wicked  plan, 
He  heard  mid  sounds  of  trampling  feet 
A  voice  which  cried  far  up  the  street, 
"Sabrina." 

They  drove  the  maid  o'er  hill  and  dale 
Until  they  reached  a  gloomy  vale, 
And  then  without  a  hymn  or  prayer, 
In  silence  grim,  they  buried  there, 
Sabrina. 

The  Sophomores  they  cussed  and  swore 
Of  oaths  some  ninety  gross  or  more; 
But  to  their  supper  had  to  go 
Without  the  girl  they'd  longed  for  so, 
Sabrina. 


6  SABRINA 

And  if  to-day  you  wish  to  cloy 
Some  dainty  little  Ninety  boy, 
It  always  works  for  reasons  clear, 
To  whisper  softly  in  his  ear, 
"Sabrina!" 

The  first  Odd  Class  Sabrina  Banquet  was  an 
auspicious  occasion.  The  Supper  was  held  at 
Watch  Hill,  R.  I.,  and  Sabrina  was  greeted  with 
tumultuous  applause.  The  class,  having  char- 
tered a  tug,  sailed  around  the  Sound,  following 
the  Yale-Harvard  boat  race  on  a  little  ship  bear- 
ing Sabrina  aloft  upon  her  bow.  This  caused 
quite  a  sensation  at  the  regatta,  and  many  ques- 
tions were  asked  concerning  her. 

That  evening  H.  C.  Crocker,  then  guardian, 
took  her  by  train  to  Westerly,  R.  I.  and  then  to 
Watch  Hill  by  wagon.  Sabrina,  according  to 
'91  men,  was  reported  to  have  liked  the  company 
of  its  protecting  class  much  better  than  that  of 
the  class  of  '90.  In  the  two  succeeding  years  the 
Even  Classes,  then  in  college,  availed  nothing  in 
their  attempts  to  capture  the  Goddess. 

In  the  Fall  of  1889  she  was  formally  handed 
down  to  the  class  of  '93,  at  that  time  in  its 
Freshman  year.  This  was  the  beginning  of  the 
tradition  that  Sabrina  should  be  regarded  as 
the  subject  of  legitimate  warfare  between  Odd 
and  Even  classes,  and  that  she  should  descend 
by  right  of  heritage  to  the  succeeding  class.  All 


EARLY  DAYS  7 

this  winter  she  was  kept  in  the  barn  at  the  home 
of  Wells,  '91,  at  Hatfield.  This  class  brought 
Sabrina  to  its  freshman  banquet  which  was  held 
at  Springfield,  and  at  this  time  and  during  the 
rest  of  that  year  she  was  under  the  guardianship 
of  Schauffler  who  kept  her  under  a  haymow  in  a 
barn  at  Claremont,  New  Hampshire. 

Ninety-three  planned  to  have  its  Sophomore 
Banquet  in  Boston  in  June  1891.  The  Goddess 
had  been  moved  to  a  warehouse  in  Springfield  and 
a  committee  was  intrusted  to  bring  the  statue  to 
the  dinner.  James  Breed  was  selected  to  take 
Sabrina  to  Boston,  and  E.  R.  Houghton  to  see 
her  safely  back  to  Springfield.  Breed,  after  crat- 
ing the  statue,  saw  it  safely  to  Boston  where  it 
appeared  at  the  banquet  in  Tremont  House,  and 
was  greeted  with  the  caresses  which  have  become 
since  a  time-honored  custom.  '93's  account,  of 
its  banquet  appeared  in  the  Olio.  She  was 
called  "Our  Fostering  Divinity  Sabrina,"  and 
from  this  time  on  she  has  been  held  the  Goddess 
of  many  a  class. 

Houghton  re-shipped  the  statue  by  American 
Express  to  Springfield  and  went  to  Amherst 
planning  to  conceal  it  safely  the  next  day,  but 
on  his  arrival  in  Springfield  he  found  no  Sabrina 
waiting  for  him.  The  reason  for  Houghton's 
disappointment  laid  in  the  activity  of  the  class 
of  '94.  When  these  Even  Classmen  got  wind 


8  SABRINA 

of  the  Boston  banquet  they  sent  one  of  their 
members,  Ben  Hyde,  "to  get"  Sabrina.  Hyde, 
once  in  Boston,  speedily  traced  the  box  in  which 
she  had  been  shipped  to  the  express  office  and 
there  discovered  that  she  had  been  sent  to  Spring- 
field in  the  name  of  E.  R.  Houghton  that  morn- 
ing. He  promptly  went  to  Springfield,  entered 
the  office  of  the  American  Express  Company, 
and  asked  if  a  packing  case  addressed  to  E.  R. 
Houghton  had  been  received.  The  clerk  answer- 
ing in  the  affirmative,  he  then  asked  him  if  he 
had  not  received  a  notification  to  reship  the  box 
immediately  to  Boston.  Hyde  was  so  insistent 
and  his  manner  was  so  serious  that  the  clerk  was 
brought  completely  to  his  knees.  With  his  as- 
sistance the  statue  was  loaded  on  to  an  east 
bound  train  in  the  nick  of  time.  Hyde  signed 
the  receipt  for  the  box  in  his  own  name,  and  this 
stroke  of  daring,  be  it  said  to  his  credit,  was  not 
discovered  by  the  worried  clerk. 

On  his  way  to  Boston  with  the  statue  Hyde 
decided  upon  his  future  plans.  He  telegraphed 
an  old  servant  to  meet  him  at  the  train,  and  to 
notify  no  one  of  what  was  going  on.  When  the 
train  pulled  in,  the  box  was  placed  in  a  wagon, 
and  Hyde  and  his  servant  drove  off  with  it. 

By  this  time  the  news  had  spread  abroad  and 
for  several  days  Hyde  kept  up  an  exciting  game 
of  "Hyde  and  Seek."  The  old  servant  who  was 


EARLY  DAYS  9 

very  familiar  with  Boston,  proved  of  great  serv- 
ice in  concealing  the  statue  by  day,  and  then 
moving  it  to  new  and  unknown  places  by  night. 
Sabrina  is  stated  to  have  reposed  at  this  time  in 
many  parts  of  Boston,  Cambridge,  and  along 
the  water  front  and  in  the  South  End.  While 
this  game  was  being  played,  Hyde  had  returned 
to  Amherst,  where  he  was  confronted  with  ar- 
rest on  the  charge  of  forgery  by  the  American 
Express  Company.  He  lost  no  time  in  getting 
to  New  York,  and  with  a  promptitude  which 
was  characteristic  of  his  splendid  daring  and 
quick  judgment  throughout  this  entire  escapade, 
took  a  steamer  for  Europe,  and  remained  abroad 
for  a  few  months  while  the  disturbance  he  had 
kicked  up  died  down. 

The  class  of  '93,  justly  angered  at  having  lost 
their  Goddess,  made  every  effort  to  apprehend 
Hyde,  but  Hyde  Senior,  looking  further  into  the 
matter,  discovered  that  the  class  of  '93  had  no 
legal  title  to  Sabrina;  that  it  had  been  stolen 
from  Amherst  College  by  a  previous  class,  and 
accordingly  he  interviewed  the  officials  of  the 
Express  Company  and  explained  that  the  entire 
affair  was  a  huge  college  joke.  Together,  they 
agreed  that  the  matter  should  be  dropped  unless 
the  college  should  request  that  they  take  action. 
Hyde  now  returned  and  was  welcomed  by  the 
men  of  his  class  as  the  hero  of  the  hour. 


10  SABRINA 

Ninety-four  at  once  took  action  to  celebrate 
their  new  possession  of  the  Goddess  in  a  fitting 
way.  Plans  were  laid  for  a  banquet  to  be  held 
at  Brattleboro,  Vermont,  this  spot  being  chosen 
because  it  reduced  the  possibilities  of  pursuit  to 
the  minimum. 

A  special  train  was  chartered  on  the  New 
London  and  Northern  R.  R.,  now  the  Central 
Vermont,  and  was  held  in  waiting  back  of  the 
hat  factory.  The  entire  class  reached  it  in 
good  order,  and  as  the  train  slowly  moved  away 
the  strains  of  a  song  since  become  well  known 
upon  the  campus  were  heard  for  the  first  time. 
The  song  was  written  especially  for  the  occasion 
by  Ned  Burnham,  and  is  as  follows; 

"All  hail!     Sabrina  dear, 
The  Widow  of  each  passing  year; 
Long  may  she  live  and  be 
The  Widow  of  posterity." 

In  the  meantime  Sabrina  had  been  brought 
from  Boston  to  Brattleboro  and  here  Stone, 
president  of  '94,  and  Ben  Hyde  took  her  to  the 
rear  entrance  of  the  Brooks  House  where  the 
class  arrived  about  ten  o'clock.  The  statue  was 
unboxed  and  presented  to  the  class  amidst  the 
usual  applause.  After  '94  had  given  vent  to  all 
its  righteous  enthusiasm  for  their  recently 
reclaimed  divinity,  she  was  loaded  into  a  wagon 
and  Stone,  accompanied  by  Hyde,  Howe,  and 


EARLY  DAYS  11 

Smith  drove  her  to  the  hiding  place  which  had 
been  agreed  upon  beforehand,  Hermon  C.  Har- 
vey, a  resident  of  Chesterfield,  N.  H.,  allowing 
Sabrina  to  be  safely  tucked  away  under  the 
floor  of  his  barn. 

The  men  returned  to  Brattleboro  and  accom- 
panied the  class  to  Amherst  where  they  arrived 
early  the  next  morning.  The  rumors  of  Odd 
Class  detective  work  were  rife  in  college  during 
the  following  year,  and  this  culminated  in  the 
attempt  of  '93  to  bluff  Hyde  and  Stone  into 
betraying  the  hiding  place  of  the  statue.  Hyde 
was  informed  by  a  stranger  that  the  location  of 
the  Goddess  was  known.  The  Odd  Class  hoped 
in  this  way  to  induce  Stone  to  re-visit  the  place 
of  concealment  and  then  to  quietly  track  him 
there.  Hyde,  however,  proved  too  astute  to  be 
deceived  by  this  trick.  Later  on  in  the  year, 
however,  Stone  shipped  the  statue  to  Hyde  in 
Boston,  where  it  was  kept  until  Sabrina  was 
turned  over  to  the  class  of  '96  at  their  Sophomore 
Banquet. 

Ninety-six  had  its  first  glimpse  of  Sabrina  in  the 
fall  of  its  Freshman  year,  1892,  at  its  Class  Sup- 
per which  was  held  in  the  Mansion  House  in 
Greenfield.  To  hold  a  Sabrina  Banquet  so  near 
to  Amherst  was  considered  a  daring  innovation, 
but  arrangements  had  been  carefully  worked  out 
beforehand:  a  special  train  had  been  chartered, 


12  SABRINA 

and  all  was  made  ready.  As  the  class  was  about 
to  board  the  train  they  discovered  to  their  con- 
sternation that  large  numbers  of  '95  and  '93  were 
already  inside.  No  one,  save  the  guardians  knew 
where  the  supper  was  to  be.  A  rumor  was 
quietly  spread  about  by  the  Even  Classes  that 
the  banquet  was  to  be  held  at  Brattleboro,  and 
when  the  train  arrived  at  Millers  Falls  '96  was 
called  out  on  the  platform,  where  they  politely 
offered  to  fight  the  classes  of  '95  and  '93.  This 
offer  being  refused  in  equally  polite  terms,  various 
enterprising  Even  Classmen  shut  the  doors  of 
the  coaches,  and  the  train  was  ordered  out  of  the 
station.  Thus,  the  Odd  Classmen  were  com- 
pletely outwitted,  but  this  happening  so  alarmed 
the  guardians  that  it  was  deemed  advisable  not 
to  bring  Sabrina  to  Greenfield.  The  banquet, 
nevertheless,  was  held  and  proved  more  success- 
ful than  recent  banquets. 

Ninety-six  was  to  see  its  Goddess,  however,  and 
this  event  took  place  when  they  held  their  Sopho- 
more banquet  at  Nassau,  N.  H.  A  special  train 
transported  the  class  to  Nassau.  All  this  time 
Sabrina  had  been  concealed  in  a  sausage  factory 
in  Boston,  from  where  she  was  shipped  in  care  of 
Stone.  At  the  banquet  she  was  formally  turned 
over  to  '96,  Charles  Staples  being  appointed 
guardian.  Accounts  of  this  banquet  describe 
the  old  custom  of  carrying  the  Goddess  into  the 


EARLY  DAYS  13 

banquet  hall  on  the  shoulders  of  the  football  men 
of  the  class.  She  was  enthusiastically  received, 
and  as  usual,  occupied  her  position  of  honor  at  the 
table. 

The  box  in  which  Sabrina  had  reached  Nassau 
was  re-shipped  by  Staples  and  this  case,  in  the 
course  of  time,  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Odd 
Classmen.  The  box  was  opened  and  to  their 
great  disgust  they  beheld  not  the  familiar,  much 
coveted  Goddess,  but  a  heap  of  paltry  scrap  iron. 
This  happening  rather  dampened  the  ardor  of 
'95,  and  we  can  well  imagine  the  amusement  that 
it  caused  the  members  of  the  class  of  '96. 

Staples  had  in  the  meantime  secreted  the  God- 
dess in  a  cistern  in  the  attic  of  a  house  in  Bran- 
don, Vermont.  Later  on  in  the  year  this  same 
guardian,  while  attending  a  dance  at  Smith  Col- 
lege, overheard  a  certain  fair  Sophomore  telling 
some  '95  men  that  she  knew  where  Sabrina  was. 
His  consternation  increased  as  he  heard  the 
young  lady  describe  the  location  of  the  Goddess 
exactly,  not  only  saying  that  it  was  in  Brandon, 
Vermont,  but  giving  the  actual  details  of  its  con- 
cealment in  a  cistern.  The  '95  men  appeared  to 
be  greatly  interested,  but  postponed  search,  for 
the  more  present  pleasures  of  the  occasion. 
Staples,  without  stopping  to  change  his  evening 
clothes,  went  directly  to  Brandon  and  promptly 
shipped  Sabrina  to  Elba,  N.  Y.  under  the  guise 


14  SABRINA 

of  " special  machinery."  Here  she  was  kept 
until  turned  over  to  the  class  of  '98. 

This  incident  illustrates  the  extent  to  which 
Sabrina's  fame  had  been  noised  abroad.  As 
later  developments  revealed,  Staple's  roommate 
was  discovered  to  have  intimated  to  a  girl  in 
Boston  that  he  was  connected  with  Sabrina  do- 
ings, and  on  that  account  had  at  one  time  gone 
to  Vermont.  The  remainder  of  the  story  is  a 
product  of  the  imagination  of  the  young  lady, 
and  is  an  interesting  sidelight  upon  the  doings  of 
Dame  Gossip.  After  the  tale  was  communicated 
to  the  girl's  mother,  it  gradually  found  its  way 
back  to  Smith  College,  where  Staples  heard  it, 
with  the  alarming  results  recorded  above. 

Ninety-eight  held  its  Freshman  Banquet  at 
Hartford  but  due  to  the  pressing  activity  of  '97, 
Sabrina  did  not  grace  the  affair.  Samuel  B.  Fur- 
bish was  selected  as  guardian,  and  under  his  gen- 
eralship Sabrina  was  brought  to  the  Sophomore 
Banquet  of  the  class,  held  at  the  Putnam  House  in 
Bennington,  Vermont.  Furbish  journeyed  to 
Rotterdam  Junction,  New  York,  where  he  re- 
ceived the  statue,  which  he  immediately  shipped 
to  Bennington. 

This  banquet  was  a  brilliant  affair.  Sabrina 
appeared  upon  the  shoulders  of  the  football 
heroes,  and  was  placed  upon  a  large  divan  near 
the  head  table.  She  was  greeted  in  prescribed 


EARLY  DAYS  ,  15 

form,  and  then  quickly  disappeared.  After  the 
class  had  returned  to  Amherst,  Furbish  re-packed 
the  statue  and  started  out  on  a  tedious  journey 
by  wagon  for  the  New  York  boundary  line. 
Arriving  at  Cambridge,  N.Y.,  the  box  was  shipped 
to  Albany,  where  it  was  concealed  in  a  ware- 
house. Here  it  remained  until  the  Fall  of  1897 
when  it  was  turned  over  by  Furbish  to  E.  E. 
Green,  the  new  guardian  of  the  class  of  1900. 

Sabrina  appeared  to  the  class  of  1900  on  Mon- 
day evening  November  1,  1897,  in  the  Hotel 
Mohican  in  New  London  where  their  banquet 
was  held.  Careful  arrangements  had  been  made 
beforehand.  The  Goddess  was  taken  from  Al- 
bany to  New  Haven  where  Green  discovered 
that  the  last  train  for  New  London  had  gone. 
This  was  on  the  day  of  the  banquet.  But  upon 
putting  up  a  good  story  about  the  urgent  neces- 
sity of  getting  his  " machine"  to  New  London 
that  night,  arrival  was  effected.  The  statue 
was  taken  to  the  hotel,  and  as  the  class  sat  about 
the  board,  Sabrina  was  ushered  in  by  four  men. 
After  she  had  been  greeted  and  given  the  cus- 
tomary ovation,  she  was  again  whisked  away 
and  started  on  her  travels. 

Green  set  out  in  a  wagon  on  a  forty  mile  jour- 
ney across  state  in  the  face  of  a  howling  storm. 
After  several  hours  of  the  most  hectic  adventur- 
ing the  wagon  broke  down.  Temporary  repairs 


16  SABRINA 

were  made  and  the  journey  continued  to  where 
a  new  team  was  kept  in  waiting.  Here  it  was 
found  necessary  to  wait  for  further  repairs  and  it 
was  not  until  early  morning  that  they  resumed 
their  flight.  Arriving  at  the  railroad  station,  the 
statue  was  shipped  to  Albany  where  it  remained 
until  it  was  given  into  the  custody  of  the  class  of 
1902. 

Members  of  the  class  of  '99,  although  having 
no  advance  information  of  the  banquet  in  New 
London,  arrived  there  the  morning  afterwards. 
They  attempted  by  all  possible  means  to  trace 
Sabrina  after  she  left  the  hotel,  and  although 
large  sums  of  money  were  offered,  no  authentic 
information  was  uncovered.  It  was  rumored 
that  Sabrina  was  removed  and  placed  beneath 
the  waters  of  the  lake  nearby  and  that  the  class 
of  '99  had  taken  her  from  this  resting  place  and 
had  secreted  her  themselves  after  the  Even  Class- 
men had  returned  to  college.  This,  however, 
turned  out  to  be  nothing  more  than  an  imagina- 
tive writing  of  a  reporter  for  a  local  newspaper, 
and  of  those  '99  men  who  had  made  a  strenuous 
but  unsuccessful  attempt  to  recover  the  statue 
for  the  Odd  Classes. 

The  banquet  of  the  class  of  1902  was  similar 
in  many  ways  to  preceding  affairs.  The  God- 
dess had  been  turned  over  to  Robert  Cleeland  by 
Green,  and  after  an  arm  of  the  statue  which  had 


EARLY  DAYS  17 

been  broken  on  the  adventurous  trip  related 
above  had  been  repaired,  Sabrina  was  shipped  to 
Springfield  and  stored  in  the  factory  of  Kibbe 
Brothers,  the  trip  being  accomplished  without 
difficulty.  The  original  plan,  to  hold  the  ban- 
quet at  the  Hotel  Wellington,  North  Adams,  was 
discovered  by  Odd  Classmen,  necessitating  a 
change,  and  as  a  result  the  supper  was  held  at 
the  Hotel  Worthy  in  Springfield.  Again  it  was 
thought  risky  to  bring  the  statue  so  near  to 
Amherst,  but  the  banquet  was  held  without  any 
untoward  event.  After  her  appearance  Sabrina 
was  again  hidden  away  in  the  Kibbe  factory. 

Odd  Class  activity  was  strong  during  this 
period  in  the  college.  1904  had  great  difficulty 
in  selecting  a  guardian  upon  whom  suspicion  did 
not  attach,  but  Joseph  B.  Eastman  was  finally 
selected.  Making  an  ingenious  excuse  that  his 
uncle  had  died  and  that  he  was  on  his  way  to 
attend  the  funeral,  Eastman  went  to  Springfield 
on  May  4,  1902.  The  next  day  he  and  Cleeland 
took  Sabrina  from  the  factory  and  shipped  her  to 
New  London.  The  box  was  taken  to  the  second 
story  of  the  Massasoit  House  where  she  awaited 
the  arrival  of  the  Class  of  1894.  When  all  had 
taken  their  places  Sabrina  was  ushered  into  the 
room,  greeted  with  great  enthusiasm,  and  the 
usual  mystic  rites  having  been  performed,  the 
Goddess  disappeared.  Eastman  shipped  her  by 


18  SABRINA 

the  Norwich  line  to  New  York  City  where  she 
was  hidden  in  a  store-house  on  West  Street. 

Ralph  W.  Wheeler  was  chosen  the  guardian 
of  1906.  This  class  held  their  banquet  at  the 
Murray  Hill  Hotel,  New  York  on  May  9,  1904, 
and  two  days  before,  Wheeler  removed  the 
statue  to  the  hotel.  The  class  arrived  next 
day  and  the  Goddess  made  her  appearance. 
This  banquet  was  unusual  in  that  it  was  held  at 
high  noon.  Afterwards  the  statue  was  hidden 
in  the  second  story  of  a  machine  shop  in  Man- 
hattan. 

Breaking  all  tradition  the  same  city  was  again 
chosen  as  the  place  in  which  to  hold  the  next 
Sabrina  Banquet,  that  of  the  class  of  1908. 
Fayette  F.  Read,  the  new  guardian,  after  the 
usual  banqueting  ceremonies  had  taken  place  at 
the  Hotel  Astor  on  March  19th,  1906,  took  the 
Goddess  to  a  Fifth  Avenue  warehouse  where  she 
was  left  for  a  week,  after  which  he  removed  her 
to  Holyoke.  From  there  she  was  taken  up  the 
river  and  hidden  in  a  log  cabin  near  the  bank. 


NINETEEN  TEN 

WHEN  the  class  of  1910  came  into  the 
possession  of  Sabrina  they  decided  to 
stimulate  a  wider  interest  in  the  tra- 
dition by  showing  it  to  the  entire  college.  Plans 
were  laid  to  bring  it  through  town  during  Prom 
time,  and  the  particular  event  chosen  was  the 
Williams  baseball  game.  Max  Shoop,  then  guar- 
dian, arranged  with  Green,  1912,  to  bring  his 
machine  to  college  a  few  days  ahead  of  time,  so 
that  no  suspicion  might  attach  to  its  presence. 
Sabrina  was  at  this  time  in  the  cottage  of  Read, 
guardian  of  '08,  and  on  May  24th,  Fink,  presi- 
dent of  1910,  Francis,  Henry  and  Shoop  of  '10, 
and  Corwin  and  Green  of  '12,  took  the  statue  from 
its  hiding  place  and  brought  it  back  to  Amherst, 
where  it  was  secreted  over  night  in  the  cellar  of 
the  house  of  John  Henry.  The  next  afternoon 
secret  instructions  were  given  the  entire  class  of 
1910  to  assemble  at  Henry's  barn  that  evening. 
They  foregathered  there  and  by  candle  light  they 
saw  Sabrina. 

Her  presence  within  the  college  town  was  a 
complete  surprise  and  was  a  breach  of  tradition, 
for  Sabrina  had  not  been  in  Amherst  for  the  last 
fifteen  years.  When  the  class  had  left  their 

19 


20  SABRINA 

Goddess,  the  six  men  mentioned  above  put 
Sabrina  into  Green's  car  and  took  her  to  the 
home  of  Mr.  Toole,  living  near  Sunderland,  where 
she  was  left  over  night. 

On  the  next  afternoon,  which  was  a  Wednes- 
day, at  two  o'clock  the  undergraduates  marched 
to  Pratt  Field  to  witness  the  Williams  game. 
This  was  the  signal  for  the  plotters  to  steal  from 
town  unobserved.  Sabrina  was  again  placed  in 
the  tonneau  of  Green's  car  and  preparations  were 
made  for  defence  in  the  event  of  attack. 

The  arrangements  at  the  field  were  thoroughly 
carried  out:  each  gate  was  watched,  the  tele- 
phone in  the  dressing  room  was  disconnected, 
new  locks  were  kept  in  readiness  to  fasten  the 
gates  after  Sabrina  had  left  the  field,  various  men 
were  told  to  put  Odd  Class  motor  cycles  and 
automobiles  which  might  be  used  in  pursuit  out 
of  business,  and  all  was  made  ready.  Sabrina 
was  to  appear  on  the  field  at  five  minutes  past 
four.  A  second  machine  was  to  be  held  in  wait- 
ing outside  the  fence  to  follow  Green's  car  and 
block  pursuit. 

The  car  bearing  Sabrina  drove  into  town  at 
four  o'clock  and  when  the  appointed  time  had 
come  approached  the  field.  Williams  was  at  bat 
in  the  first  half  of  the  fifth  inning.  The  ma- 
chine with  Sabrina,  carefully  concealed,  entered 
the  ball  grounds  and  casually  took  its  place 


NINETEEN  TEN  21 

alongside  the  other  cars  present,  whose  occu- 
pants had  no  idea  of  the  event  about  to  take 
place.  As  the  inning  closed  Green  started  for- 
ward and  ran  his  car  down  second  base  line  as 
the  Goddess  was  raised  on  high.  After  a  mo- 
ment's astonished  pause,  the  crowd  broke  loose, 
and  the  air  was  filled  with  conflicting  shouts  of 
Sabrina  and  non-Sabrina  patrons. 

The  car  quickly  disappeared  and  the  gates 
were  shut  behind  her  by  men  told  off  for  this 
duty,  and  was  seen  speeding  on  its  way  toward 
Northhampton,  being  followed  in  the  rear  by 
another  car,  and  Bedford  and  Ladd,  '10,  on 
motor  cycles.  Arriving  at  the  crossroads  in 
Hadley,  the  second  car  was  sent  on  to  "Hamp" 
to  baffle  pursuers,  and  the  motor  cycles  returned 
to  Amherst.  Sabrina  then  made  her  way 
quickly  down  the  river  road  and  was  hidden  in 
the  cellar  of  a  jewelry  store  in  Holyoke. 

A  fact  which  adds  excitement  to  this  escapade 
was  the  casual  remark  of  a  certain  tradesman 
who  had  heard  of  the  gathering  in  Henry's  barn 
the  night  previous,  and  had  actually  seen  Sa- 
brina taken  away  later.  This  man  dropped  the 
remark  to  a  student  who  had  happened  into  the 
store  that  Sabrina  was  going  to  be  brought  to 
the  game  that  day.  As  luck  would  have  it  this 
man  was  an  Even  Classman  and  at  once  com- 
municated this  information  to  the  Sabrina  guar- 


22  SABRINA 

dians,  who  in  turn  hastened  to  impress  upon  the 
tradesman  the  error  of  his  ways. 

Not  content  with  this  coup,  1910  planned 
fresh  adventures.  The  class  of  '94  had  requested 
that  Sabrina  appear  at  their  reunion  banquet 
at  the  coming  Commencement.  Although  this 
seemed  to  be  taking  enormous  chances,  Fink 
and  Shoop  decided  that  it  should  be  done  to  show 
the  real  respect  all  true  Sabrina  men  had  for  the 
class  of  '94. 

Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  these  two  men 
were  constantly  under  observation  they  ar- 
ranged the  plans.  On  June  28th  they  left 
Springfield  with  two  machines  and  proceeded  to 
Holyoke  where  they  removed  Sabrina.  Here 
they  were  joined  by  Francis,  Seligman,  Corwin, 
Broughton  and  Johns,  and  they  proceeded  up 
the  road  to  Hadley,  after  leaving  the  rear  of  the 
jewelry  store  with  Sabrina,  Fink  remaining  this 
time  in  Amherst  as  a  scout. 

The  '94  banquet  was  to  be  held  in  Hitchcock 
Hall  and  Shoop  was  to  call  Fink  three  times  at 
different  points  along  the  line  to  see  if  the  coast 
was  clear,  so  that  they  might  beat  a  hasty  re- 
treat even  up  to  the  last  moment.  If  no  danger 
was  foreseen  during  the  last  few  moments,  the 
machines  were  to  stop  near  Hitchcock  Hall  and 
Sabrina  was  to  be  taken  to  the  doorway  of  the 
banquet  hall  and  a  picture  taken  of  her.  The 


NINETEEN  TEN  23 

plans  worked  out  successfully,  the  various  calls 
going  through  in  fine  shape.  The  machines 
entered  Amherst  by  the  Northampton  Road, 
and  while  the  lights  were  being  lit  the  last  call 
was  made,  and  everything  was  reported  quiet. 
This  was  the  signal  for  action. 

Driving  quickly  by  Hitchcock  Hall,  the  ma- 
chines stopped  and  Sabrina  was  taken  up  to  the 
door  and  a  flashlight  taken  during  tumultuous 
applause.  Immediately  she  was  put  back  in  the 
car  and  disappeared  down  South  Pleasant  Street 
and  around  by  Blake  Field  and  out  on  to  the 
"Hamp  Road/7  They  narrowly  avoided  a  trap 
in  front  of  Chi  Psi  which  had  been  planned  by 
Wheelock,  1911,  who  was  the  chief  instigator  of 
all  Odd  Class  opposition  at  that  time,  but  this 
attempt  was  a  minute  too  late  to  be  of  any  avail. 
Sabrina  was  taken  back  to  Holyoke  where  she 
was  hidden  in  the  jewelry  store. 

Much  credit  deserves  to  be  given  to  the  class 
of  1910  and  to  the  men  in  that  class  chiefly  re- 
sponsible for  Sabrina  who  had  committed  the 
unprecedented  and  daring  acts  of  bringing  the 
Goddess  into  Amherst  where  she  had  not  been 
for  many  years,  twice  during  a  month.  The 
first  time  the  Odd  Classmen  were  completely 
surprised  and  offered  little  if  any  opposition,  but 
the  second  time  they  were  naturally  on  the  alert 
for  the  appearance  of  the  statue,  and  not  with- 


24  SABRINA 

standing  the  fact  that  a  great  many  of  the 
Alumni,  both  Odd  and  Even,  were  in  Amherst 
at  the  time,  the  1910  men  again  brought  Sabrina 
safely  into  town.  These  two  daring  feats  did 
much  to  enliven  and  vitalize  the  tradition  that 
had  become  attenuated  by  repetition  of  nothing 
but  Sabrina  Banquets  every  two  years. 


NINETEEN  TWELVE 

NINETEEN  TWELVE  held  its  Sabrina 
Banquet  in  the  Hotel  Astor  on  the  4th  of 
March  1910.  She  was  taken  to  the  hotel 
by  Cornell,  Henry,  Seligman  and  Shoop  of  the 
class  of  '10,  who  removed  her  from  her  place 
of  hiding  in  a  down  town  bank  where  she  had 
been  taken  the  day  before  from  Holyoke,  and 
took  her  to  the  roof  of  the  Astor  where  she 
was  unpacked  and  immediately  carried  into  the 
banquet  hall  amidst  "  All  Hails. "  After  she  had 
been  duly  caressed,  she  was  formally  turned  over 
to  the  class  of  1912.  The  Goddess  was  taken 
away  at  once,  re-packed  and  again  stored  in  the 
bank.  The  following  Monday  she  was  shipped  to 
a  small  town  on  the  Maine  Coast  where  she  re- 
mained for  some  time. 

This  banquet  was  held  in  spite  of  a  well-planned 
attempt  of  the  Odd  Classmen  to  steal  the  Goddess. 
Wheelock  knew  that  she  was  hidden  in  the  above 
mentioned  bank  and  gained  entrance  to  the  build- 
ing. A  prolonged  search  failed  to  reveal  the  much 
coveted  statue  and  accordingly  a  staff  of  de- 
tectives was  employed  to  watch  the  structure 
day  and  night.  It  was  never  known  just  when 
Sabrina  was  removed  from  the  bank  under  the 
eyes  of  these  professional  guardians,  but  certain 

25 


26  SABRINA 

it  is,  that  she  made  her  appearance  at  the  1912 
banquet  in  the  manner  chronicled  above. 

Sabrina  did  not  long  remain  in  her  resting 
place  on  the  Maine  coast  for  she  was  sent  by 
Harold  Whiteman,  guardian  of  the  class  of  1912, 
to  Buffalo  where  she  was  secreted  in  the  house 
of  Charles  J.  Staples,  who  had  been  the  guardian 
of  '96. 

It  was  again  decided  that  Sabrina  should  ap- 
pear in  Amherst  at  Commencement  time  and 
that  the  class  that  should  have  the  opportunity 
of  seeing  her  should  be  1900,  then  holding  its 
tenth  reunion.  Staples  brought  Sabrina  with 
him  from  Buffalo  and  took  her  to  the  home  of  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Whiteman,  a  brother  of  the  1912  guar- 
dian, who  lived  in  Greenfield,  Mass.  Here  she 
remained  for  a  few  days  before  being  taken  to 
Amherst. 

On  the  Monday  afternoon  of  this  Commence- 
ment there  was  a  ball  game  with  Wesleyan,  and 
the  Odd  Classmen  again,  under  the  direction  of 
Wheelock,  suspecting  that  Sabrina  might  appear 
at  this  time,  kept  careful  watch  throughout  the 
game,  but  their  efforts  were  of  no  avail  for 
Sabrina  did  not  appear.  During  the  day 
Wheeler,  Bauman,  Hubbard,  Miller  and  White- 
man '12,  and  Seligman,  Francis  and  Shoop  '10 
left  town  arid  proceeded  to  Greenfield  where 
they  found  Sabrina.  The  men  proceeded  again 


S.  D.  CHAMBERLAIN 
1914  Guardian 


NINETEEN  TWELVE  27 

according  to  a  pre-arranged  plan  to  Amherst, 
telephoning  at  certain  stated  times  to  Cornell, 
'10,  who  had  remained  at  Amherst  to  report  any 
activity  of  the  Odd  Classmen.  Repeated  phone 
calls  revealed  the  fact  that  everything  was  quiet 
in  Amherst  so  far  as  Odd  Class  activity  was  con- 
cerned, and  Sabrina  sped  on  her  way  into  town 
and  arrived  in  front  of  the  Psi  U.  house  about 
eight  o'clock.  This  time,  Sabrina  was  not  re- 
moved from  the  car;  she  was  lifted  to  the  view 
of  the  1900  men  who  had  not  seen  her  since  their 
banquet  thirteen  years  before,  and  a  flashlight 
was  taken.  It  happened  that  the  Kellogg  Prize 
Speaking  Contest  was  just  over  and  the  com- 
mon and  streets  were  filled  with  people.  After 
remaining  but  a  few  minutes  before  the  cheering, 
enthusiastic  Even  Classmen,  Sabrina  with  her 
guardians  started  from  town,  this  time  not 
towards  Hamp,  but  towards  Holyoke  over  the 
Notch.  Once  safely  out  of  danger  of  pursuit, 
Sabrina  was  transferred  from  the  hired  car  in 
which  she  had  been  taken  to  Amherst  to  one 
which  belonged  to  Wheeler,  '10,  and  was  then 
placed  in  an  old  barn  in  Holyoke.  The  packing 
case  used  for  Sabrina 's  transportation  had  mean- 
while been  shipped  from  Greenfield  to  Holyoke 
and  the  next  day  she  was  again  boxed  and  carted 
to  the  Holyoke  station. 

Now  began  one  of  the  most  thrilling  adven 


28  SABRINA 

tures  in  all  Sabrina's  checkered  career,  during 
which  she  was  frequently  on  the  point  of  capture, 
and  more  than  once  eluded  her  pursuer  only 
through  a  trick  of  fate. 

The  intention  had  been  to  send  Sabrina  to  the 
home  of  Staples,  in  Buffalo,  immediately,  but 
owing  to  a  delay  on  the  railroads  she  did  not 
leave  Holyoke  until  two  days  after  her  appear- 
ance at  the  1900  banquet.  Whiteman  and  Read 
accompanied  her  to  Springfield  where  she  was 
again  held  up,  this  time  waiting  for  an  express 
car.  Whiteman  feared  recognition  in  the  Spring- 
field station  and  went  at  once  to  Buffalo,  leaving 
Read  to  guard  the  statue.  The  express  authori- 
ties had  been  warned  by  shippers  in  Holyoke  to 
allow  no  one  near  the  box,  and  one  of  the  officials 
ordered  Read  away  from  it.  Read  left,  being 
fairly  sure  that  if  the  express  officials  were  obey- 
ing instructions  so  implicitly  there  was  little 
to  fear  from  Odd  Class  attempts.  Later  in  the 
day  the  box  was  shipped  to  Buffalo.  Before  it 
was  shipped  Read  had  seen  detectives  measuring 
the  box,  and  promptly  telegraphed  Whiteman  in 
Buffalo  that  pursuit  was  probable.  Whiteman, 
however,  received  the  box  and  took  it  to  Staple's 
house  on  Parker  Avenue.  He  remained  in  Buf- 
falo all  that  day,  but  as  there  was  no  sign  of  pur- 
suit he  left  for  home. 

An  account  in  the  Year  Book  of  the  class  of 


NINETEEN  TWELVE  29 

1911  furnishes  the  basis  for  the  chronicling  of 
subsequent  events.  Wheelock,  1911,  the  man 
who  was  the  prime  mover  in  all  non-Sabrina 
demonstrations,  had  discovered  that  Whiteman 
was  the  1912  guardian.  That  Sabrina  would 
appear  in  Amherst  at  Commencement  was  known 
almost  to  a  surety.  These  suspicions  were  con- 
firmed by  the  appearance  of  Whiteman  in  com- 
pany with  Staples,  '96  guardian,  in  the  Green- 
field station  where  they  were  seen  by  an  Odd 
Classman.  Whiteman  was  accordingly  watched. 
It  was  not  suspected  that  Sabrina  would  be 
shown  at  the  banquet  of  the  class  of  1900,  for 
1907  was  holding  its  Class  Supper  in  the  same 
hotel,  The  Draper,  and  the  risk  seemed  too  great 
to  be  taken.  However  Sabrina  was  shown  at 
the  reunion  headquarters  of  1900  in  Amherst,  on 
Monday  night,  and  the  Odd  Classmen  were 
caught  napping. 

Wheelock  immediately  set  out  to  trace  the  stat- 
ue's flight  and  soon  learned  that  it  had  gone  down 
the  Holyoke  road  and  been  shifted  into  another 
automobile,  but  from  here  on  the  trail  was  lost. 
Wheelock  thought  she  had  been  shipped  back  to 
Greenfield  and  accordingly  went  there  next  day. 
Returning  to  Amherst  he  shadowed  Whiteman 
closely,  thinking  that  he  would  soon  slip  out  of 
town  to  tend  to  the  final  hiding  of  the  statue. 
He  learned  that  Whiteman  was  going  to  Green- 


30  SABRINA 

field  next  morning  and  would  depart  later  in  the 
day  for  Rochester,  so  Wednesday  morning  Bates 
and  Wheelock  took  the  car  for  Northampton. 
To  their  surprise  the  Even  Class  guardian  also 
took  this  car.  To  further  add  to  their  dismay 
he  did  not  take  the  Greenfield  train  at  North- 
hampton,  but  sent  a  telegram  to  his  brother  say- 
ing he  would  be  unable  to  see  him  in  Greenfield. 
Whiteman  now  took  the  train  to  Springfield 
whither  he  was  followed  by  the  two  Odd  Class- 
men. As  they  neared  the  Holyoke  station, 
Whiteman  suddenly  jumped  from  the  train. 
Here  he  engaged  in  a  short  conversation  with  a 
person  who  seemed  to  be  expecting  him.  He 
then  entered  the  train  again.  Bates  and  Whee- 
lock, following  close  on  his  trail,  caught  the  train 
as  it  pulled  out,  and  when  the  latter  again  dropped 
off  the  train  at  Riverside,  they  waited  until  the 
train  moved  out  of  the  station  and  then  jumped 
off,  out  of  sight  of  their  ward.  With  great  diffi- 
culty the  two  men  followed  the  Sabrina  guardian 
for  a  while  but  eventually  lost  him  in  a  crowd. 
They  promptly  returned  to  Holyoke  where 
Wheelock  made  his  way  to  the  Baggage  Room  in 
hopes  of  finding  the  statue.  Here  he  saw  the 
man  with  whom  Whiteman  had  spoken  a  few 
moments  before,  and  under  pretense  of  looking 
for  some  lost  baggage  he  searched  the  office 
and  soon  discovered  a  box  bearing  the  address 


NINETEEN  TWELVE  31 

of  Staples.  This,  he  was  certain,  contained 
Sabrina. 

Wheelock  and  Bates  left  the  office  planning  to 
come  back  later  and  put  Sabrina  on  a  train,  but 
in  this  move  they  were  anticipated  by  White- 
man.  They  promptly  turned  their  steps  toward 
Springfield,  notifying  Pinkerton  headquarters 
that  "the  box"  had  been  discovered  at  Holyoke, 
and  requesting  that  men  follow  and  watch  it. 

Upon  reaching  Springfield,  Bates  was  left  to 
watch  while  Wheelock  went  to  New  York  to  se- 
cure funds  for  further  pursuit.  Bates  wired  him 
that  Sabrina  had  gone  on  to  Buffalo,  and  he 
promptly  caught  the  train  from  New  York 
arriving  in  Buffalo  about  ten  o'clock  Thursday 
morning.  Here  he  found  the  box,  with  the 
Pinkertons  on  guard.  It  was  shortly  afterward 
delivered  to  Staple's  house  and  Wheelock  tele- 
graphed to  Amherst  for  reserves.  On  Friday 
morning  Hubbard  '07,  Stott  and  Williams,  '11 
arrived. 

It  was  accordingly  decided  to  attempt  the 
capture  of  Sabrina  the  next  day  and  inasmuch  as 
the  first  move  was  to  get  Mr.  Staples  out  of  town, 
Wheelock  called  at  Staples'  office,  representing 
himself  as  being  a  Mr.  Francis  Cogswell  Wickes. 
He  told  Mr.  Staples  that  "he  had  recently  in- 
herited a  large  sum  of  money  from  his  uncle  in 
Syracuse  and  that  as  the  heirs  were  going  to 


32  SABRINA 

contest  the  will,  he  wanted  Mr.  Staples  to  go 
down  to  Syracuse  for  a  conference  with  his 
cousins."  After  some  cross-examining  Mr. 
Staples  consented,  and  it  was  agreed  that  he 
should  go  down  that  afternoon,  "Wickes"  to 
join  him  at  Rochester. 

Detectives  confirmed  Mr.  Staples  departure 
that  afternoon,  and  immediately  Wheelock, 
Clarke,  Hubbard  and  Stott  went  to  Staples' 
house  with  a  machine.  They  planned  to  arrive 
there,  represent  themselves  as  Even  Classmen 
and  present  evidence  that  Whiteman  had  sent 
them  there  to  remove  Sabrina,  and  in  this  way 
make  the  capture.  A  telegram  was  to  be  de- 
livered just  after  their  arrival,  supposedly  signed 
by  Whiteman,  to  bear  them  out  in  their  story. 

But  here  an  unkind  fate  upset  their  ingenious 
plans:  their  machine  blew  a  tire  and  they  ar- 
rived at  Staple's  house  after  the  fake  telegram 
came,  instead  of  before.  This  telegram  read: 

"  Charles  J.  Staples,  246  Parker  Avenue, 
Buffalo,  N.  Y. 

Rochester,  6.24  P.  M. 

"  Hiding  place  discovered.  Odd  Classmen  on 
way  to  Buffalo  on  train  to  seize  it.  I  am  watched. 
Am  sending  Miles  with  men  in  machine  to  trans- 
fer. Deliver  it  to  them  and  come  with  it  your- 
self." 

(Signed)         Harold  B.  Whiteman. 


NINETEEN  TWELVE  33 

When  the  men  arrived  only  Mrs.  Staples  was 
at  home,  and  as  she  did  not  know  to  which  classes 
her  visitors  belonged,  she  refused  them  admit- 
tance. They  asked  for  Mr.  Staples  and  ap- 
peared greatly  surprised  when  told  he  was  not  at 
home.  Wheelock,  introducing  himself  as  Miles, 
'12,  produced  a  note  supposedly  written  by 
Whiteman  directing  him  to  go  for  the  statue. 
Mrs.  Staples  informed  Wheelock  that  Sabrina 
was  not  in  the  house  and  that  she  had  not  re- 
ceived any  telegram  such  as  he  had  told  her  of, 
and  added  that  she  would  not  believe  them  until 
she  heard  directly  from  Whiteman.  Wheelock, 
playing  his  last  trump,  promptly  told  Mrs. 
Staples  that  Whiteman  had  said  that  if  he  could 
escape  his  followers  he  would  wait  for  them  at 
the  Hotel  Richmond  with  a  machine  in  which  to 
transfer  Sabrina,  and  that  in  all  probability  she 
could  get  him  there  now.  Williams  had  been 
stationed  in  this  hotel  and  was  to  answer  any 
telephone  calls  for  Staples.  Mrs.  Staples 
promptly  called,  but  here  again  fate  intervened 
between  the  Odd  Classmen  and  their  much 
coveted  goal.  The  telephone  had  just  been 
taken  out. 

In  the  meantime  Mr.  Staples,  realizing  that  he 
had  been  duped,  telegraphed  his  wife  to  be  care- 
ful. Mrs.  Staples  promptly  summoned  the 
police  and  the  carefully  laid  plans  for  the  cap- 


34  SABRINA 

ture  of  Sabrina  by  the  class  of  1911  were  broken 
up  once  and  for  all.  Wheelock  and  his  band 
retreated  with  as  good  grace  as  they  might,  and 
after  shaking  hands  with  Mrs.  Staples,  departed. 
Later  on  they  learned  that  Sabrina  was  taken 
away  in  her  box  at  3.30  in  the  afternoon  of  July 
4,  and  no  trace  of  her  destination  was  found. 

Thus  ended  an  exciting  chapter  in  the  life  and 
travels  of  a  much  followed  Goddess.  Combina- 
tions of  luck  and  bungling  had  robbed  the  Odd 
Classmen  of  their  best  chance  of  obtaining  pos- 
session of  Sabrina.  But  the  war  was  still  to  be 
waged. 

Wheelock's  account  of  this  affair  in  the  Year 
Book,  mentioned  before,  concludes  as  follows. 
"Some  day,  however,  the  Evens  will  bungle,  and 
there  will  be  no  Mrs.  Staples  to  save  them,  and 
fortune  may  not  favor  them  with  flat  tires  and 
missing  telephones,  and  the  police  may  not  be 
quite  so  near  at  hand,  and  then  there  will  be  a 
different  result  in  this  most  unequal  contest." 

Truly,  a  great  prophecy! 

The  Even  Classes  were  so  worried  by  the  at- 
tempt led  by  Wheelock  to  rob  them  of  their 
Deity,  that  Sabrina  did  not  again  venture  from 
her  hiding  place  until  the  banquet  of  the  class 
of  1914  which  was  held  at  the  Hotel  Rensselaer 
in  Troy,  New  York. 

Sydney  Chamberlain  was  appointed  guardian 


NINETEEN  TWELVE  35 

of  '14  and  every  precaution  was  taken  in  making 
arrangements. 

Wednesday  morning,  February  14th,  1912  the 
Even  Classmen  left  Amherst  for  Albany,  all  but 
two  or  three  of  the  class  of  1914  being  present  as 
well  as  several  seniors.  They  spent  the  day  in 
Albany  and  that  evening  gathered  in  the  lobby  of 
the  Hotel  Ten  Eyck.  Stuart,  '12,  took  the  men 
to  Troy  by  trolley  where  they  went  at  once  to  the 
Hotel  Rensselaer.  During  the  dinner  a  tele- 
gram was  received  from  Fink  in  Boston,  stating 
that  Wheelock,  then  in  New  York,  and  Blades, 
'09,  at  that  time  in  Brockton,  had  received  news 
of  the  banquet  and  were  planning  to  take  im- 
mediate action.  Sabrina  was  accordingly  put 
in  her  box  and  sent  immediately  to  Buffalo 
where  she  was  again  secreted  in  the  house  of 
Staples  '96. 


NINETEEN  FOURTEEN 

WHEN    commencement    of    1913    ap- 
proached, the  powers  that  be,  at  the 
instigation  of  Max  Shoop,  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  it  was  time  to  bring  Sabrina  to  the 
attention  of  the  college  body  and  the  returning 
classes.     This  commencement  was  deemed  an  es- 
pecially auspicious  occasion  inasmuch  as  a  large 
number  of  Even  Classes  were  to  be  back,  and  par- 
ticularly as  1910  was  holding  its  third  reunion. 

As  the  result  of  a  conference  between  Shoop, 
and  Chamberlain,  '14,  who  was  the  guardian  at 
that  time,  it  was  definitely  arranged  to  bring 
Sabrina  into  town  on  the  day  of  the  Dartmouth 
baseball  game,  and  if  possible,  to  drive  her  in  a 
machine  on  to  Pratt  Field  and  to  exhibit  her 
before  the  commencement  crowd. 

The  details  were  left  entirely  to  Chamberlain, 
who  at  a  later  date  laid  his  plans  before  McGay 
'14,  the  only  other  man  in  college  who  knew  of  the 
Lady's  present  whereabouts.  These  two  then 
chose  S.  G.  Hubbard,  R.  M.  Kimball,  W.  O. 
Morrow  and  Heald,  '14,  and  W.  H.  Smith  '16, 
the  latter  two  of  whom  were  to  drive  the  two 
cars  composing  the  expedition,  to  assist.  The 
guardian  swore  his  assistants  to  eternal  secrecy, 
cautioning  them  that  the  success  of  their  scheme 


NINETEEN  FOURTEEN  37 

lay  entirely  in  keeping  any  knowledge  of  it  from 
the  Odd  Classmen,  and  assuring  them  that  every- 
thing would  be  plain  sailing  if  such  were  the  case. 

The  plan  outlined  to  the  conspirators  was  that 
Morrow  would  proceed  to  Buffalo  where  Sabrina 
was  in  the  keeping  of  C.  J.  Staples,  '96,  and  con- 
duct her  to  Springfield.  At  that  point,  he  was 
to  be  met  by  the  Even  Classmen.  Sabrina  was 
then  to  be  taken  to  Kibbe's  candy  factory,  in 
Springfield,  unpacked  from  her  box  and  then 
placed  in  Smith's  machine  and  taken  to  the  home 
of  Hubert  Barton,  '10,  in  South  Amherst.  In 
the  meantime  McGay  and  Kimball  were  assigned 
the  task  of  surreptitiously  cutting  away  a  part  of 
the  fence  on  the  western  side  of  Pratt  Field,  and 
then  replacing  it  in  such  a  manner  that  it  might 
be  instantly  removed  in  case  the  main  exit 
to  the  field  should  be  blocked. 

It  was  decided  to  let  a  few  other  even  classmen 
in  on  the  plans  an  hour  or  so  before  the  event 
was  to  transpire  for  the  purpose  of  having  more 
help  in  case  of  trouble.  Men  were  to  be  sta- 
tioned at  both  entrances  of  the  field  with  pad- 
locks and  chains,  one  man  at  the  underpass  with 
a  flag  to  signal  that  the  road  was  clear,  another 
at  the  Amherst  House  to  receive  telephone 
messages  from  the  automobile  party  as  it  ap- 
proached town,  and  still  another  at  the  Delta  Up- 
silon  House  to  keep  watch  on  that  part  of  town. 


38  SABRINA 

It  was  planned  to  start  from  Barton's  house 
with  the  statue  in  Smith's  car  and  proceed  to- 
wards Pratt  Field,  stopping  several  times  to 
phone  the  lookouts.  Arriving  at  the  east  gate 
of  the  field,  which  was  to  be  in  charge  of  a  '  14 
man,  the  car  was  to  enter  the  field,  drive  across 
the  diamond,  and  make  its  way  out  by  way  of  the 
Hamp  gate,  where  Heald  '14,  in  his  car,  Buffing- 
ton  '14,  Curtis  '14  and  Ames  '16,  on  their  motor 
cycles,  armed  with  revolvers,  were  to  be  waiting 
and  follow  as  a  rear  guard. 

Chamberlain  realized  that  he  was  under  sus- 
picion and  knew  that  his  absence  from  town  would 
be  a  clear  announcement  that  something  was 
likely  to  happen.  For  this  reason  he  delegated 
Morrow  as  his  representative  and  sent  him  to 
Buffalo  to  meet  Staples,  receive  Sabrina  from 
him  and  take  her  to  Springfield. 

Inasmuch  as  Staples  and  Morrow  were  not 
acquainted  with  each  other,  the  latter  carried 
with  him  a  message  from  Professor  Genung  in 
"Nungie's"  own  handwriting,  that  was  to  serve 
as  a  pass  port.  This  precaution  was  taken,  for 
they  knew  Staples  would  be  extremely  suspicious 
owing  to  the  nearly  disastrous  results  of  the 
expedition  led  by  Wheelock,  '11,  several  years 
before,  and  that  he  would  require  some  very 
definite  proof  of  Morrow's  identity  and  authority 
before  delivering  his  precious  charge. 


p 

a 


NINETEEN  FOURTEEN  39 

Such  was  the  case,  for  when  Morrow  arrived 
in  Buffalo  and  made  himself  known  to  the  cus- 
todian he  was  forced  to  undergo  a  very  rigid 
examination  before  Staples  finally  accepted  him 
as  Chamberlain's  lieutenant.  When  Staples 
was  satisfied  that  everything  was  all  right,  he 
turned  the  Lady  over  and  Morrow  immediately 
consigned  Sabrina,  packed  in  her  large  box,  to 
the  Express  Company  for  shipment  to  Kibbe's 
factory,  and  placed  the  customary  $1000  value 
upon  it.  The  box  was  labeled  machinery  for  a 
" break  down"  job,  and  orders  were  to  rush  it 
through  with  all  possible  speed. 

All  this  took  place  on  Sunday,  the  day  before 
the  appearance  was  to  take  place,  and  Sabrina 
was  to  leave  Buffalo  on  the  three  o'clock  train 
that  afternoon,  arriving  in  Springfield  at  3:30 
A.  M.  Monday  morning. 

Sunday  night  in  Amherst,  the  first  of  the 
carefully  laid  plans  miscarried,  for  while  Kimball 
and  McGay  were  endeavoring  to  saw  through  the 
fence  at  Pratt  Field,  they  were  frightened  away 
by  a  negro  living  in  a  nearby  house  who  had  been 
awakened  by  the  noise  they  were  making.  Late 
that  evening,  they  all  met  in  Springfield  on  an 
unfrequented  side  street  and  waited  in  the  two 
motors  until  it  was  time  to  meet  the  3:30  train. 

Great  was  the  disappointment,  however,  when 
at  last  the  train  arrived  without  the  box;  the  long 


40  SABRINA 

hours  till  dawn  dragged  slowly  on,  numerous 
trains  arrived  from  the  West,  but  none  with  the 
expected  burden.  At  6  A.  M.  Morrow  wired 
Staples  and  Chamberlain  phoned  the  faithful 
watchman  at  Kibbe's  of  the  latest  turn  of  events, 
for  he  was  as  eager  for  the  experience  as  any  of 
the  others,  inasmuch  as  he  had  helped  in  other 
escapades  in  former  years.  Not  until  10  o'clock 
did  word  come  from  Buffalo  and  then  only  to 
say  that  a  tracer  was  being  sent,  but  no  real  news 
of  Sabrina  was  to  be  had. 

Many  were  the  misgivings  and  fears  that  went 
through  the  minds  of  those  men  as  they  finally 
saw  their  carefully  prepared  plans  were  doomed 
to  failure  and  as  seemed  likely  at  that  moment, 
that  they  had  undoubtedly  been  outwitted  by 
the  Odds  and  Sabrina  had  passed  to  other  hands. 
Not  until  Tuesday  morning  did  definite  word 
come  from  Staples,  and  then  it  was  to  say  that 
the  box  had  never  left  Buffalo,  due  to  some 
mix-up  in  the  office  of  the  Express  Company. 

It  was  then  too  late  to  bring  the  Lady  through 
that  Commencement,  so,  keyed  up  as  they  were 
with  excitement  and  anticipation,  Shoop  and 
Chamberlain  decided  to  cause  a  little  fun  at  the 
Lawn  Fete  and  give  the  Odd  Classes  something 
to  ponder  about.  With  this  in  mind,  Ferguson 
'16  was  secured  to  use  his  car  and  with  Avirett  '16 
under  a  robe  and  several  others  on  the  running 


NINETEEN  FOURTEEN  41 

board,  they  appeared  in  front  of  Walker  Hall 
while  the  Lawn  Fete  was  in  progress.  Word  had 
already  been  passed  around  for  the  Even  Class- 
men to  meet  there  at  10  o'clock.  In  the  dark- 
ness Avirett  raised  himself  up  under  his  covering, 
there  was  great  cheering  and  singing  of  "All 
Hail/'  and  the  automobile  disappeared,  leaving 
the  onlookers  under  the  impression  that  they  had 
actually  seen  the  Goddess.  Opinion  was  quite 
evenly  divided  as  to  whether  or  not  Sabrina  had 
actually  been  present,  until  Chamberlain  wrote 
an  article  for  "The  Monthly"  in  1916  clearing  up 
the  episode.  Naturally,  those  who  were  on  the 
inside  kept  a  close  mouth  and  smiled  a  knowing 
smile,  whenever  the  subject  was  mentioned. 

All  during  commencement  the  Odd  Classmen 
were  busy  and  had  things  carried  through  as 
Chamberlain  had  planned,  the  subsequent  his- 
tory of  Sabrina  might  have  been  very  different. 
At  water  and  Lyon  '15  were  patrolling  the  town 
in  a  car,  the  underpass  was  blocked  and  other 
guards  were  stationed  on  the  road  to  Holyoke, 
so  both  sides  were  bitterly  disappointed  at  the 
turn  affairs  took  and  all  silently  expressed  the 
hope:  "better  luck  next  time." 

After  the  unsuccessful  attempt  to  bring  Sabrina 
into  Amherst  in  June,  1913,  she  remained  peace- 
fully in  Buffalo  during  the  summer  and  until 
February  of  1914.  No  efforts  were  made  to 


42  SABRINA 

show  her  that  fall,  for  the  reason  that  McGay, 
Chamberlain,  and  Morrow  were  all  on  the  foot- 
ball team  and  did  not  care  to  entrust  her  safety 
to  others.  They  thought  it  best  to  postpone 
any  attempt  until  the  banquet  of  1914  and  1916, 
which  was  to  be  held  during  the  late  winter. 

In  February  of  1914,  Chamberlain  went  to 
New  York  where  he  met  Shoop  and  Burt,  '12, 
the  two  previous  guardians,  to  discuss  plans  for 
the  coming  banquet.  This  consultation  was  a 
necessary  part  of  the  guardian's  duties,  because 
it  was  always  required  that  the  two  preceding 
guardians  give  their  consent  before  any  move 
might  be  made. 

The  general  sentiment  at  this  conference  was 
that  the  banquet  be  held  as  near  as  possible  to 
Amherst,  for  it  was  felt  that  an  extra  stimulus 
was  needed  to  give  the  Odd  Classmen  encourage- 
ment in  their  pursuit.  Chamberlain  was  anxious 
to  have  it  held  in  Pittsfield  and  as  there  was  no 
objection,  that  town  was  decided  upon. 

A  week  later,  the  guardian  journeyed  to  Pitts- 
field  to  meet  John  Downes,  the  manager  of  the 
Wendell  Hotel.  Chamberlain  outlined  the  mat- 
ter to  Manager  Downes,  told  him  of  the  secrecy 
required,  and  found  Mr.  Downes  a  most  en- 
thusiastic and  helpful  assistant.  All  plans  for 
the  forthcoming  dinner  were  made  on  the  spot 
so  no  further  communication  would  be  required. 


NINETEEN  FOURTEEN  43 

In  the  meantime,  G.  W.  Washburn,  President 
of  1916,  had  appointed  a  banquet  committee, 
composed  of  William  Esty,  Edward  Goodridge, 
Stewart  Rider,  and  Winthrop  Smith,  to  take 
care  of  such  matters  as  menu  cards,  special  trains, 
speakers,  and  informing  the  Even  Classmen  in 
secret  of  the  time  of  departure.  Smith  was 
chosen  to  arrange  a  train  schedule  unknown 
even  to  the  rest  of  the  committee.  A  week 
ahead  of  time  the  committee  were  told  that  the 
date  set  was  March  18th,  and  that  a  special 
train  would  leave  Amherst  at  noon,  and  that  the 
men  should  be  taken  to  Springfield  where  seats 
had  been  engaged  at  Poli's  theatre  for  everyone. 
The  classes  were  to  be  allowed  to  think  the 
dinner  was  to  be  held  in  Springfield  and  were  to 
be  told  to  meet  outside  of  the  theatre;  further 
than  that  the  committee  was  to  say  nothing. 

W.  0.  Morrow  was  again  commissioned  to  go 
to  Buffalo,  which  he  proceeded  to  do,  leaving 
Amherst  on  Tuesday  and  reaching  his  destination 
late  that  night.  This  time  he  experienced  no 
difficulty  with  Mr.  Staples,  as  the  latter  knew 
him  well  on  account  of  their  meeting  the  year 
before.  Wednesday  morning,  Sabrina  was 
turned  over  to  Morrow  who  in  turn  delivered  her 
to  the  Express  Company,  consigning  her  for  ship- 
ment to  John  Downes  in  Pittsfield.  Remember- 
ing his  previous  failure,  Morrow  took  no  chances 


44  SABRINA 

and  travelled  with  the  box  that  there  might  be 
no  mistake  or  delays.  Everything  went  smoothly 
and  he  reached  Pittsfield  the  afternoon  before  the 
others  arrived.  Mr.  Downes  secreted  Sabrina 
in  the  wine  cellar  where  she  reposed  safely  under 
lock  and  key.  While  there  alone,  Morrow  was 
extremely  worried,  for  Staples  had  shown  him  a 
wire  that  he  had  just  received,  saying,  "Ship 
Box  of  Paper  to  Westfield,"  signed,  "S.  D. 
Chamberlain."  This  appeared  authentic  enough 
as  Sabrina  was  always  referred  to  as  a  "Box  of 
Paper  "  in  communication  between  Chamberlain 
and  himself.  However,  Morrow  assured  him 
that  the  plans  had  not  been  changed,  but  it 
was  sufficient  to  show  them  that  the  Odd  Class- 
men knew  more  than  they  should,  and  were 
planning  trouble. 

Early  Wednesday  morning  a  group,  consisting 
of  Chamberlain,  McGay,  Kimb^ll,  '14,  and  Rob- 
inson '16,  left  Amherst  at  different  times  to  meet 
in  Springfield.  Thereafter,  they  departed  in  Rob- 
inson's automobile  for  Pittsfield.  It  was  deemed 
advisable  to  take  along  a  car,  in  which  to  carry 
the  statue  away  from  the  hotel,  should  they  be 
forced  to  move  hurriedly;  and  it  was  thought  best 
to  have  a  car  that  could  not  be  traced,  rather  than 
a,  public  taxi  whose  driver  might  easily  be  bribed 
to  give  important  information.  They  had  not 
been  gone  long  when  a  heavy  snow  storm  began 


NINETEEN  FOURTEEN  45 

to  make  travelling  difficult;  they  were  well  into 
the  Berkshires,  when,  after  several  mishaps, 
they  saw  it  was  impossible  to  proceed  further  by 
automobile,  and  so  they  stopped  at  Chester  and 
went  the  rest  of  the  way  by  train. 

In  the  meantime,  back  in  Amherst,  the  classes 
of  1914  and  1916  assembled  at  the  B.  &  M. 
Station  at  noontime  by  ones  and  twos.  So 
carefully  had  the  announcement  been  made  by 
the  Committee,  that  the  special  train  was  well 
on  its  way  to  Springfield  before  the  Odds  realized 
the  Sabrina  banquet  was  about  to  take  place. 
The  worshippers  of  the  Goddess  went  calmly 
from  the  station  to  the  theatre  while  the  members 
of  1915  were  desperately  telegraphing  and  tele- 
phoning all  over  the  surrounding  country.  Inas- 
much as  the  Evens  apparently  had  no  intention 
of  going  beyond  Springfield,  the  Odds  decided  to 
concentrate  their  efforts  on  that  town  and  laid 
their  plans  to  that  effect.  However,  their  sur- 
prise was  great,  for  when  the  theatre  had  finished, 
the  committee  directed  everyone  to  go  to  the 
station  and  board  a  special  train,  waiting  there 
for  them.  This  was  accomplished  within  a  very 
short  space  of  time,  and  by  5:15  P.  M.  they  were 
headed  for  Pittsfield  where  they  arrived  at  six 
thirty. 

The  banquet  began  immediately  with  no 
interruption  from  the  enemy,  although  a  1907 


46  SABRINA 

graduate  unwittingly  put  in  an  appearance  and 
had  the  rare  privilege  of  gazing  on  Sabrina.  As 
soon  as  the  dinner  was  finished,  the  Goddess  was 
carried  in  amidst  wild  yells  and  shouts  of  ap- 
proval from  her  admirers.  The  strain  of  "All 
Hail  Sabrina  Dear"  commenced  while  the  eager 
Sophomores  of  1916,  who  gazed  on  their  cherished 
Goddess  for  the  first  time,  rushed  forth  to  en- 
velop her  in  their  embrace  and  place  an  ardent 
kiss  upon  her  lips.  When  the  enthusiasm  had 
somewhat  abated,  Chamberlain  succeeded  in 
making  himself  heard  and  told  of  the  whereabouts 
of  her  hiding  place  during  the  last  two  years,  at 
the  same  time  announcing  that  he  had  been  the 
guardian.  This  fact  was  greeted  with  renewed 
cheers,  for  the  element  of  secrecy  regarding  the 
guardian  was  always  of  the  greatest  interest, 
continually  causing  a  deal  of  conjecture.  It 
frequently  happened  that  guardians  were  present 
at  such  times  and  were  obliged  to  join  in  the 
argument  expressing  their  opinion  along  with 
the  rest.  Many  amusing  incidents  of  this  kind 
were  wont  to  happen  as  the  pros  and  cons  of 
various  men  for  the  office  were  set  forth. 

Before  the  banquet,  it  had  been  decided  that 
the  safest  place  to  keep  the  statue  was  right  in 
the  Hotel,  and  as  Manager  Downes  was  agree- 
able, and  even  offered  a  room  for  that  purpose, 
Chamberlain  had  Sabrina  taken  back  to  the 


W.  H.  SMITH 
1916  Guardian 


NINETEEN  FOURTEEN  47 

wine  room  and  packed  safely  away  in  the  box. 
In  order  to  give  the  Odd  Classmen  a  fake  clue,  if 
they  happened  to  be  in  the  vicinity,  a  large  box, 
closely  resembling  the  original,  was  placed  in  a 
car  manned  by  McGay,  Kimball,  Robinson,  and 
Andrews,  '16,  which  speeded  rapidly  away  to 
the  outskirts  of  the  town,  where  the  box  was 
broken  up  and  hidden.  These  men  then  went  to 
Andrew's  home  in  Pittsfield,  taking  an  early 
morning  train  back  to  Amherst. 

Back  in  the  Wendell,  the  party  went  merrily 
on,  for  in  those  days  the  18th  amendment  had 
not  even  been  dreamed  of,  and  there  was  cause 
for  much  jubilation.  Once  again  Sabrina  had 
shown  herself  and  once  again  she  had  departed 
without  interference.  While  half  the  college 
celebrated,  Morrow  and  Chamberlain  were  mak- 
ing themselves  comfortable  in  the  wine  cellar, 
zealously  chaperoning  Sabrina,  lest  any  ardent 
youth  of  1915  enslaved  by  her  attractions,  might 
seek  to  steal  her  away  for  his  own  glorification. 

The  time  was  spent  in  this  manner,  cots  having 
been  brought  in,  so  that  the  two  caretakers  were 
able  to  spend  a  most  comfortable  night.  They 
had  planned  to  take  an  early  morning  train,  but 
as  Manager  Downes  reported  that  two  men, 
apparently  detectives,  had  been  questioning  him 
and  endeavoring  to  get  information  from  the  serv- 
ants, it  was  deemed  best  to  remain  under  cover 


48  SABRINA 

till  later.  This  they  did  till -late  in  the  after- 
noon, when  word  was  passed  to  them  that  the 
coast  was  clear.  As  it  was  not  possible  to  keep 
Sabrina  in  the  wine  cellar,  the  manager  turned 
over  a  room  on  the  sixth  floor,  where  she  was 
placed  in  a  closet  upon  the  door  of  which  a  spe- 
cial lock  was  fastened.  This  having  been  ac- 
complished, Chamberlain  and  Morrow  left  Pitts- 
field  for  Amherst. 


NINETEEN   SIXTEEN 

SEVERAL  months  after  the  Pittsfield  ban- 
quet, Chamberlain  and  Smith,  '16,  took  a 
quiet  motor  trip  one  Sunday  afternoon,  the 
destination  of  which  was  the  scene  of  the  festiv- 
ities just  described.  On  this  occasion  the  former 
guardian  introduced  the  1916  guardian  to  Man- 
ager Down'es  of  the  Wendell  Hotel.  This  had  not 
been  possible  before,  because  it  was  most  import- 
ant that  the  next  guardian  be  kept  carefully  in  the 
background  that  there  might  be  no  suspicion  as 
to  his  identity.  As  soon  as  Chamberlain  had 
revealed  the  next  custodian  to  Mr.  Downes  and 
had  assured  himself  that  Sabrina  still  remained 
safely  in  the  Wendell,  the  two  left  for  Amherst. 

About  the  first  of  June,  Smith  found  an  excuse 
to  leave  town  and  seized  the  opportunity  to 
journey  to  Pittsfield  where  he  immediately  ob- 
tained the  statue,  turned  it  over  to  the  American 
Express  Company  and  consigned  it  to  himself 
in  Boston. 

Washburn,  '16,  had  made  arrangements  with 
his  father  for  the  safe-keeping  of  Sabrina,  so 
Smith  had  her  transferred  to  a  train  for  Brockton 
on  arrival  in  Boston.  Unfortunately,  he  found 
that  the  express  car  on  the  first  train  was  entirely 
filled  and  as  he  was  in  a  great  hurry,  prevailed  on 


50 


SABRINA 


the  locomotive  engineer  to  allow  the  box  to  be 
loaded  on  the  tender.  Thus,  Sabrina  travelled  for 
thirty  odd  miles  amidst  the  coal  and  cinders; 
it  was  a  strange  sight  and  must  have  caused 
much  curiosity,  but  all  went  well  and  they  arrived 
safely  in  Brockton.  Here  Mr.  Washburn  met 
Smith  with  an  automobile  truck  and  they  carried 
the  Goddess  to  a  storehouse  of  his  where  she  was 
destined  to  spend  considerable  of  her  time  for 
the  next  two  years. 

Shortly  before  college  opened  in  the  fall  of 
1914,  George  Washburn  arrived  in  Springfield 
with  the  Lady  and  from  that  point  journeyed  by 
automobile  to  Smith's  home  in  South  Hadley. 

For  three  months,  the  two  had  been  studiously 
planning  a  campaign  for  showing  Sabrina  to  the 
student  body.  Realizing  that  as  the  general 
consensus  of  opinion  among  the  Odd  Classes 
was  that  an  appearance  would  be  staged  on 
Pratt  Field,  they  decided  some  other  occasion 
would  be  more  auspicious.  Their  purpose  was 
to  find  a  time  when  most  of  the  college  body 
would  be  gathered  together,  and  likewise  a 
situation  that  would  completely  surprise  every- 
one. At  last  they  agreed  upon  Chapel  Rush. 
For  the  first  time  this  ancient  fracas  was  to  be 
held  on  the  common  in  front  of  College  Hall. 
This  situation  had  everything  in  its  favor;  there 
were  two  main  roads  to  choose  as  an  exit,  and 


NINETEEN   SIXTEEN  51 

as  the  affair  was  to  take  place  at  the  very  opening 
of  college,  they  felt  that  the  Odds  would  have 
had  no  chance  to  discuss  plans  for  a  defense. 
All  this  having  been  decided,  Washburn  and 
Smith  arranged  their  plans  in  detail. 

Before  sunrise  on  the  morning  of  Thursday,  the 
24th  of  September  1914,  Sabrina  was  placed  in 
Smith's  motor,  covered  with  robes,  and  with  top 
up  and  curtains  down,  the  men  mentioned  above 
proceeded  north  to  Hadley  and  thence  to  North 
Amherst. 

The  policy  decided  upon  had  been  to  take  as 
few  into  confidence  as  was  possible,  for  the 
guardians  were  firmly  convinced  that  secrecy 
and  not  numbers  would  go  farthest  towards 
success.  With  this  in  mind,  Ed  Goodridge  and 
Burt  Ames,  '16,  had  been  asked  to  be  in  North 
Amherst  early  that  morning,  the  latter  to  bring 
his  motorcycle.  In  addition  Gregory,  '12,  Kim- 
ball  and  Heald,  '14,  and  Robinson,  '16,  were 
to  act  as  a  rear  guard  in  Gregory's  car  and  Pike 
Gillies,  '16,1  was  selected  to  keep  the  motor  party 
in  touch  with  the  situation  by  'phone. 

At  North  Amherst,  Goodridge  took  Wash- 
burn's  place,  as  he  was  obliged  to  return  to 
college  to  help  conduct  the  Chapel  Rush,  he 
being  class  president.  Goodridge  and  Smith, 
followed  by  Ames,  immediately  went  northward 

1  Killed  in  Wall  Street  explosion,  September  16,  1920. 


52  SABRINA 

finding  a  retired  spot  on  a  lonely  road  a  mile  or 
so  above  the  village  where  they  felt  it  would  be 
safe  to  remain.  It  was  but  8 : 30,  with  more  than 
two  hours  before  the  coup  was  to  occur.  Smith 
carefully  explained  the  plan  to  the  others  and 
together  they  discussed  every  eventuality.  As 
the  Rush  was  to  take  place  on  the  common  for 
the  first  time,  it  was  hard  to  tell  how  the  specta- 
tors would  be  situated,  and  whether  the  road  to 
Holyoke  would  be  open.  If  possible  they  wished 
to  take  that  road,  but  if  this  was  not  feasible, 
they  would  take  the  next  best  course  and  go  out 
by  way  of  Northampton. 

At  eleven  o'clock,  Ames  opened  telephone 
communication  from  a  nearby  farmhouse  with 
Gillies,  who  was  in  his  room  at  the  Psi  U  house, 
where  he  was  able  to  overlook  the  campus.  He 
reported  that  chapel  was  then  going  on  and  added 
that  the  aspect  of  affairs  was  a  bit  suspicious, 
for  a  number  of  seniors  had  carried  golf  sticks 
and  baseball  bats  to  chapel  instead  of  canes,  as 
was  the  usual  custom.  This  news  was  rather 
disquieting  to  the  three  men,  who  pictured  flying 
clubs,  being  directed  at  their  heads,  but  they 
reassured  themselves  by  looking  over  their  own 
armament,  which  consisted  of  a  shot  gun,  two 
Colts,  and  several  bats,  and  felt  that  they  could 
give  a  good  account  of  themselves  if  worst  came 
to  worst. 


NINETEEN   SIXTEEN  53 

At  eleven  forty,  the  three  Even  Classmen,  with 
Ames  in  the  lead  acting  as  scout,  left  their  hiding 
place,  going  to  North  Amherst  and  thence 
through  the  Aggie  Campus  to  the  lower  part  of 
Amity  Street.  There  they  found  a  small  house 
well  sheltered  from  the  street  by  trees,  and  there, 
with  the  owner's  permission,  they  secluded  them- 
selves, lowered  the  top  of  the  car,  and  put  every- 
thing in  readiness  for  the  ride  through  town. 
Again  Ames  called  Gillies  on  the  phone,  and  held 
the  wire  open.  Shortly  before  twelve,  the  latter 
reported  chapel  was  dismissed,  that  a  large  crowd 
had  gathered  before  College  Hall  to  witness  the 
Rush,  and  that  a  large  number  of  motors  were 
lined  up  on  either  side  of  the  road.  For  that 
reason,  he  advised  Hamp  road  as  the  best  means 
of  exit,  and  they  decided  to  follow  his  advice. 

Then  came  the  message  that  the  Rush  had  be- 
gun. Ames  hurried  out  of  the  house,  jumped  on 
his  machine  and  started  off.  The  other  two,  with 
the  Lady,  were  close  behind.  Up  Amity  Street 
they  went  and  turned  the  Amherst  House  corner. 
There,  Gregory's  machine  with  the  bodyguard  of 
Even  Classmen  were  waiting  and  followed  im- 
mediately behind  the  car  with  Sabrina;  then  came 
F.  M.  Smith,  '84,  in  another  motor,  and  joined 
the  rear  guard  procession.  In  front  of  Alpha 
Delt.,  Washburn  jumped  on  the  running  board, 
joining  Goodridge  and  Smith.  At  this  point, 


54  SABRINA 

the  covering  was  pulled  away  from  Sabrina  and 
the  Goddess  appeared  for  the  first  time  in  several 
years  to  a  very  surprised  Amherst  crowd. 

Then  they  speeded  up.  A  horse  and  wagon 
was  standing  directly  across  the  Holyoke  road, 
apparently  to  block  it.  However,  Gillies  sud- 
denly rushed  forth  from  the  crowd,  dragged  the 
horse  to  one  side  leaving  the  road  clear.  That 
was  all  Ames  needed,  and  without  a  moment's 
hesitation  he  chose  that  direction.  Several  shots 
fired  in  the  air  attracted  the  attention  of  the 
spectators  and  all  were  able  to  get  a  clear  view 
of  Sabrina  as  she  passed  through  their  midst 
and  on  down  the  Holyoke  Road. 

Before  the  Rush  began,  Tom  Ashley,1  '16,  had 
visited  all  the  automobiles,  relieving  them  of 
their  spark  plugs  and  keys.  This  prevented 
any  immediate  attempt  to  follow  and  was  largely 
responsible  for  the  easy  get  away. 

The  party  with  Sabrina  travelled  directly  over 
the  Amherst-Holyoke  road  by  way  of  the  Notch 
at  a  rapid  rate  of  speed.  On  nearing  Holyoke, 
the  other  cars  were  signalled  that  they  were  no 
longer  needed;  Washburn  and  Smith  went  di- 
rectly to  the  latter's  home,  put  Sabrina  carefully 
away,  and  were  back  in  Amherst  by  the  middle 
of  the  afternoon. 

Shortly  after  this  memorable  trip,  Sabrina  was 

1  Killed  in  action  at  Belleau  Wood  while  serving  with  the  Marines. 


I 

O* 


NINETEEN   SIXTEEN  55 

packed  away  in  her  box  and  again  continued  her 
travels,  this  time  under  the  guidance  of  Wash- 
burn  and  Smith.  She  journeyed  to  Brockton,  re- 
maining there  for  just  one  year  under  the  careful 
watch  of  Washburn's  father. 

Numerous  plans  were  contemplated  for  bring- 
ing the  Goddess  forth  and  it  was  finally  decided 
to  exhibit  her  once  again  to,  the  alumni  at  com- 
mencement in  June  1915.  The  details  were  all 
carefully  arranged,  the  various  duties  were  as- 
signed, while  Mr.  Washburn  remained  ready  at 
a  moment's  notice  to  ship  the  box  by  express  on 
receipt  of  a  coded  telegram.  At  the  last  moment, 
the  secret  service  of  1916  discovered  the  Odd 
Classmen  had  worked  out  elaborate  plans  to 
circumvent  any  attempt  made  at  this  time,  and 
so  it  was  decided  best  to  let  the  Lady  rest  in 
peace  until  a  more  favorable  opportunity  might 
present  itself. 

During  the  summer,  Washburn  and  the  guard- 
ian had  several  conferences  and  finally  decided 
to  hold  the  next  banquet  within  walking  distance 
of  Amherst  in  order  to  prove  decisively  to  the 
Odd  Classmen  how  fruitless  any  effort  to  capture 
Sabrina  would  be  on  their  part.  With  this  in 
mind,  Smith  visited  the  Nonotuck  during  the 
latter  part  of  the  summer  to  talk  with  Mr.  Bene- 
dict, the  manager.  He  outlined  the  plan  and 
Mr.  Benedict  agreed  to  the  arrangements,  even 


56  SABRINA 

offering  his  private  storeroom  on  the  top  of  the 
hotel  as  a  hiding  place  for  the  statue,  and  swore 
by  all  that  was  holy  to  maintain  the  utmost 
secrecy. 

In  September  1915,  before  college  had  opened, 
Washburn  came  to  Holyoke  with  Sabrina.  Here 
he  was  met  by  the  guardian  and  conducted  to 
the  Nonotuck,  where  the  Goddess  was  carefully 
concealed  according  to  the  prearranged  plan. 
At  the  same  time  the  menu  for  the  banquet  was 
agreed  upon,  the  date  was  set,  and  Mr.  Benedict 
was  given  to  understand  that  he  would  hear  no 
further  word  until  his  guests  arrived  in  February 
of  the  following  year. 

Little  did  the  many  students  of  Amherst 
realize,  who  so  frequently  visited  the  Nonotuck 
in  that  year  when  prohibition  reigned  in  Hamp, 
that  they  were  dining  and  drinking  under  the 
same  roof  with  Sabrina.  Such  was  the  case 
however,  yet  she  rested  as  peacefully  and  safely, 
dreaming  of  her  past  and  future  glories  as  though 
she  were  a  thousand  miles  away  from  her  beloved 
campus. 

During  the  night  before  the  banquet  which  was 
held  on  February  22,  1916,  the  members  of  1916 
and  1918  were  given  their  instructions  individ- 
ually by  the  sophomore  committee  and  at  noon 
the  next  day  they  wandered  in  small  groups  to  the 
Boston  and  Maine  station.  At  lunch  time,  the 


NINETEEN  SIXTEEN  57 

Odd  Classmen  awoke  to  the  fact  that  no  Even 
Classmen  were  in  Amherst,  and  at  once  began 
making  plans  to  break  up  the  banquet.  In  the 
meantime  the  special  train  was  speeding  to- 
wards Springfield.  On  arriving  in  that  city,  the 
two  classes  proceeded  to  Poli's  theatre  where  the 
entire  orchestra  had  been  reserved  for  them. 
They  assembled  again  at  five  thirty,  still  in  com- 
plete ignorance  of  their  destination,  and  boarded 
special  electric  cars  which  took  them  to  the  door 
of  the  Nonotuck  in  Holyoke. 

Several  Odd  Classmen  had  traced  the  Even 
Classmen  to  Springfield,  arriving  in  time  to  see 
them  depart  for  Holyoke,  and  by  hiring  a  taxi  they 
were  able  to  follow  them.  At  Holyoke,  they  got 
in  touch  with  Amherst  and  ordered  a  large  num- 
ber of  their  cohorts  to  come  down  immediately. 
They  felt  that  their  time  had  come  and  they 
made  hasty  preparations  to  break  up  the  dinner 
and  to  follow  the  car  bearing  Sabrina,  when  it 
should  leave  the  hotel. 

Earlier  in  the  day,  five  Seniors:  Ames,  Ashley, 
Goodridge,  Smith  and  Washburn,  left  town  for 
Holyoke.  By  a  prearranged  plan,  they  met  the 
guardian,  who  had  secured  a  truck  and  a  large 
packing  box  which  closely  resembled  the  one 
the  Lady  was  kept  in.  This  was  taken  to  the 
Nonotuck  where  the  five  men  carried  it  to  the 
store  room  where  Sabrina  was  concealed.  There 


58  SABRINA 

they  remained  until  word  was  received  that  the 
special  cars  had  come. 

The  dinner  began  immediately,  while  outside, 
three  husky  policemen  guarded  each  exit  with 
strict  orders  to  allow  no  one  to  enter  the  hotel 
except  with  the  permission  of  an  Even  Classman 
who  remained  there  on  watch  with  them.  In 
this  way  the  committee  felt  that  the  banquet 
could  go  on  in  peace  even  though  every  Odd 
Classman  in  college  put  in  an  appearance.  The 
original  plan  had  been  to  wait  until  the  banquet 
was  finished  before  showing  Sabrina,  but  word 
was  received  from  Amherst  that  a  great  many 
1917  men  were  on  their  way  to  Holyoke.  For 
this  reason,  the  five  Seniors  hastened  their  plans 
and  carried  the  Goddess  into  the  Banquet  Hall 
while  the  dinner  was  still  in  progress.  Immedi- 
ately loud  and  prolonged  cheers  burst  forth  and 
then  came  "  All  Hail  Sabrina  Dear,"  which  lasted 
for  some  fifteen  minutes  with  unabated  enthusi- 
asm. It  was  finally  silenced  by  Senior  Class 
president  Washburn,  who  introduced  Winthrop 
Smith  as  the  1916  guardian.  The  banqueters 
then  marched  forward  to  kiss  their  Goddess 
according  to  the  time  honored  custom.  After 
this  ceremony,  the  men  were  allowed  a  more 
intimate  inspection  of  the  famous  statue,  then 
a  flashlight  photograph  was  taken  and  Sabrina 
disappeared  again  from  the  eyes  of  the  world. 


NINETEEN   SIXTEEN  59 

This  time  her  journey  was  extremely  short, 
for  the  seniors  carried  her  to  the  storeroom  up- 
stairs and  locked  her  up  safely.  They  then 
substituted  the  box  that  had  been  brought  in 
during  the  afternoon  and  put  it  on  the  elevator 
and  thence  to  the  rear  door  where  Smith's 
chauffeur  was  waiting  with  a  motor.  With  much 
pretended  effort,  they  succeeded  in  placing  it  in 
the  car  and  sped  swiftly  away,  only  just  in  time 
however,  for  within  a  very  few  minutes  a  large 
crowd  of  1917  men  arrived.  As  the  box  was 
being  placed  in  the  car  there  were  three  or  four 
Odd  Classmen  within  a  few  yards,  but  they  dared 
do  nothing  to  interfere,  only  following  immedi- 
ately in  a  taxi. 

The  car  with  the  seniors  dodged  through  a 
number  of  streets  and  alleys  and  when  they  felt 
that  they  had  lost  any  pursuers  that  might  still 
be  on  their  track,  they  headed  for  South  Hadley; 
there  they  broke  up  the  box  and  carefully  hid 
the  remnants.  Then  they  separated  with  in- 
structions not  to  appear  in  Amherst  until  next 
day,  in  order  to  give  the  appearance  that  Sabrina 
had  been  taken  away  to  a  considerable  distance. 

In  June  of  that  year,  plans  were  again  made 
to  bring  Sabrina  into  Amherst  at  commencement, 
for  the  class  of  1910  was  holding  its  sixth 
reunion  and  Shoop  of  that  class  was  very  eager 
to  show  her  to  his  classmates.  Sabrina  was  still 


60  SABRINA 

in  Holyoke  so  it  was  thought  it  would  be  a  com- 
paratively easy  matter  to  rush  her  in  to  1910 
headquarters  and  back  again.  Monday  night 
was  the  time  set,  but  a  few  hours  before,  the  wife 
of  one  of  the  Odd  Class  alumni  very  fortunately 
made  the  remark  to  one  of  the  men  that  was  to 
take  part  in  showing  the  Goddess  that  night, 
that  they  were  going  to  use  her  husband's  car 
that  evening  to  help  catch  Sabrina.  Again  plans 
were  called  off,  while  Odd  Class  cars  patrolled 
the  roads  all  night  long  in  vain  hope  of  giving 
chase. 


NINETEEN  EIGHTEEN 

PHILIP  H.  SEE  had  been  appointed  guar- 
dian for  the  class  of  1918.  Sabrina  was  offi- 
cially turned  over  to  him  in  June  1916  by 
Winthrop  H.  Smith,  the  1916  guardian.  In  the 
latter  part  of  this  month,  the  Goddess  was  sent  by 
express  from  Holyoke  to  New  York  and  taken  to 
a  warehouse  on  107th  Street  where  a  private  room 
had  been  provided  for  her  safe-keeping.  In  the 
trip  from  Holyoke  the  box  in  which  the  Goddess 
had  been  travelling  for  ten  years  had  become 
entirely  demolished,  and  early  in  September  the 
guardian,  together  with  George  B.  Carter,  '06, 
visited  the  warehouse  and  built  a  new  box,  antic- 
ipating some  fast  and  furious  travelling  in  the 
near  future. 

See  in  the  meantime  had  been  in  close  com- 
munication with  George  Washburn,  '16,  and 
together  they  planned  some  rather  startling  inno- 
vations in  connection  with  the  appearance  of 
Sabrina  in  Amherst.  It  has  always  been  the 
ambition  of  each  succeeding  Sabrina  class  to 
outdo  its  predecessor  in  the  spectacular  way  in 
which  Sabrina  shall  be  shown  to  the  college  body 
at  Amherst.  The  first  of  these  appearances  was 
to  be  inside  of  Chapel  during  the  Spring  of  1917, 
and  the  other  one  was  to  be  at  Commencement 

61 


62  SABRINA 

of  the  same  year.  For  this  latter  event,  a  de- 
tailed plan  had  been  worked  out  whereby  Sabrina 
was  to  appear  four  times  within  an  hour,  the 
cars  containing  the  statue  using  the  back  roads 
of  the  town,  and  returning  to  the  center  at 
stated  intervals,  it  being  expected  that  the  Odd 
Classmen  would  be  thrown  into  such  a  state 
of  confusion  over  each  separate  appearance  that 
they  would  not  expect  the  Goddess  again  on  the 
same  day  and  at  the  same  place. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  in  the  spring  of 
1917  the  United  States  entered  the  World  War, 
and  the  college  was  thrown  immediately  into  a 
state  of  confusion.  Military  training  was  es- 
tablished and  the  college  given  over  to  prepara- 
tions for  war.  With  the  resignation  of  the 
guardian  and  most  of  his  committee  from  college, 
all  plans  for  the  appearances  of  Sabrina  were 
cancelled.  The  Goddess  had  not  been  moved 
from  her  hiding  place  in  New  York,  and  it  was 
decided  to  leave  her  there  until  affairs  settled 
down  generally  and  the  college  returned  to 
normal  conditions.  Harold  F.  Johnson,  '18, 
was  appointed  temporary  guardian  for  1918  and 
Sabrina  was  turned  over  to  him  late  that  spring. 

A  year  later,  Johnson  decided  that  an  appro- 
priate time  had  arrived  for  showing  the  Goddess 
in  Amherst.  During  the  early  spring  he  and 
Jacob  Estey,  '18,  spent  many  afternoons  on  the 


NINETEEN  EIGHTEEN  63 

golf  links,  and  together  worked  out  the  plans  for 
the  proposed  appearance.  These  two  men  de- 
cided that  Sabrina's  next  appearance  should  be  a 
truly  exciting  affair:  one  which  would  not  only 
completely  outwit  and  humiliate  the  Odd  Class- 
men, but  which  would  be  as  original  and  daring 
an  enterprise  as  any  former  escapade.  Johnson 
had  heard  from  See  of  the  plan  to  show  Sabrina 
inside  Chapel  and  this  idea  struck  him  as  being 
quite  suited  to  an  appearance. 

However,  when  they  came  to  lay  their  plans, 
they  found  that  the  difficulties  that  would  be 
encountered  in  taking  the  Goddess  into  Johnson 
Chapel  were  so  great  that  the  idea  hardly  seemed 
feasible.  Either  the  statue  would  have  to  be 
taken  there  the  night  before  and  securely  hidden 
until  the  critical  moment,  or  a  large  body-guard 
would  have  to  be  employed  to  carry  her  in  and 
out  during  Chapel  exercises.  Both  plans  seemed 
too  risky.  At  this  time,  classes,  chiefly  seminar 
courses,  were  being  held  in  the  evening  in 
Johnson  Chapel,  and  for  this  reason  the  two 
men  came  to  the  conclusion  that  they  might 
encounter  too  much  eavesdropping.  It  also 
appeared  impossible  to  rush  the  Goddess  in  at 
the  Chapel  service  for  reasons  which  are  too 
obvious  to  mention.  The  college  had  had  a 
taste  of  one  war  and  it  was  not  thought  good 
form  to  precipitate  another, 


64  SABRINA 

Still  clinging  to  the  idea,  a  Chapel  appearance 
was  worked  out.  It  was  decided  that  some 
method  should  be  employed  which  would  allow 
the  Even  Classmen  to  leave  the  building  after 
Chapel  without  arousing  the  suspicion  of  the 
Odd  Classmen,  and  that  Sabrina  should  be 
brought  up  along  the  road  and  held  up  to  the 
view  of  the  Odd  Classmen.  Doors  and  windows 
were  to  be  securely  locked  and  guarded,  and 
for  this  purpose  various  Even  Classmen  were 
told  off. 

Estey  and  Johnson  went  over  these  plans 
carefully  several  times,  and  having  made  sure 
that  no  slips  were  likely  to  occur,  decided  on  an 
early  date  in  April  for  the  appearance. 

Johnson,  on  the  pretext  of  urgent  business, 
went  to  New  York  where  he  took  Sabrina  from 
her  place  of  hiding  where  she  had  been  since 
June  1916,  and  arranged  to  have  her  shipped  to 
Brattleboro,  Vermont,  on  the  White  Mountain 
Express.  No  difficulty  was  experienced  in  ar- 
ranging for  the  trip,  and  Johnson  accompanied 
the  Goddess.  He  arrived  in  Brattleboro  about 
midnight  where  he  was  met  by  Estey.  To- 
gether, they  loaded  the  statue  into  the  latter's 
car  and  took  it  to  his  house.  Sabrina  was  here 
placed  in  the  drawing  room.  Amid  these  sur- 
roundings, which  were  a  great  change  for  the 
Goddess  after  her  many  trips  over  land  and  sea 


NINETEEN  EIGHTEEN 


65 


in  rough  boxes,  and  her  long  sojourns  in  out-of- 
the-way  places,  she  stayed  while  two  or  three 
Even  Class  alumni,  who  lived  in  the  vicinity, 
one  of  whom  was  a  former  guardian,  came  in  to 
pay  her  their  respects. 

At  six  the  next  morning,  she  was  placed  in 
Estey's  car  and  started  for  Amherst.  In  the 
car  were  Chase,  Johnson,  Estey,  '18,  and  Estey's 
younger  brother,  of  the  class  of  nineteen  twenty. 
After  an  uneventful  journey  they  arrived  on  the 
outskirts  of  the  town  at  about  quarter  of  eight. 
Here  they  stayed  until  the  student  body,  rushing 
in  its  customary  hurried  way  to  breakfast  and 
even  more  hurriedly  to  Chapel,  was  safely  behind 
the  doors  of  the  building.  Not  until  the  last 
straggler  was  seen  running  up  the  hill  did  they 
venture  onto  the  campus.  Circling  the  Com- 
mon, they  drove  around  the  terrace  by  the  church 
and  came  to  a  stop  opposite  Appleton  Cabinet, 
where  the  plan  was  for  them  to  halt  until  they 
should  be  signalled  that  Chapel  was  over  and 
the  coast  clear.  While  they  were  waiting  here 
three  Odd  Classmen,  having  cut  Chapel  and  on 
their  way  to  classes,  passed  very  near  to  the  car 
without  suspecting  its  precious  occupant.  One 
of  them  stopped  in  passing  to  light  a  cigar- 
ette, but  his  thoughts  were  elsewhere  and  his 
chance,  if  it  could  be  said  to  have  been  a  chance, 
slipped  by. 


66  SABRINA 

Inside  the  building,  Chapel  was  drawing  to  a 
close.  There  was  the  usual  impatience  to  be 
gone  and  have  the  customary  cigarette  before 
entering  the  class  room  for  the  first  hour.  At 
the  end  of  the  reading  of  notices,  Malcolm  Sharp, 
'18,  with  a  serious  face,  requested  the  classes 
of  '19  and  '21  to  remain  in  their  seats  for  a  few 
moments  after  the  conclusion  of  the  exercises. 
As  the  recessional  was  played  the  Even  Classmen 
filed  out.  Immediately,  the  doors  were  secured 
and  as  soon  as  it  was  sure  that  the  Odds  were 
trapped,  the  signal  was  given.  Sabrina  was 
quickly  moved  from  her  hiding  place  and  as  the 
car  containing  her  slowly  moved  by  the  south 
side  of  Chapel,  Sabrina  was  lifted  from  the  ton- 
neau  of  the  car  and  held  up  to  the  gaze  of  the 
bewildered  Odd  Classmen,  who  were  looking 
dumfounded  from  the  windows,  and  to  the  Even 
Classmen  gathered  outside  Chapel.  A  few  men 
succeeded  in  dropping  from  the  lower  windows 
to  the  ground,  but  there  were  too  many  Evens 
protecting  the  Goddess,  and  nothing  was  ac- 
complished. "All  hail,  Sabrina"  rent  the  air, 
and  after  a  few  moments  the  machine  drove 
away  over  the  Notch. 

Pursuit  was  ineffectual  for  some  time,  as  the 
Even  Class  program  had  included  the  complete 
incapacitation  of  all  automobiles  and  motor- 
cycles belonging  to  Odd  Classmen.  After  driv- 


P.  H.  SEE 
1918  Guardian 


NINETEEN  EIGHTEEN  67 

ing  about  the  country  for  a  couple  of  hours  to 
make  sure  that  no  one  was  following,  the  men 
above  mentioned  who  were  accompanying  the 
statue,  took  it  to  a  barn  on  the  road  to  Westfield 
not  far  out  of  that  town.  Here  she  was  hidden 
deep  in  a  hay-mow.  That  same  morning  Seward 
and  Hallock,  '19,  after  vainly  attempting  to  get 
the  latter's  car  in  commission,  succeeded  after 
an  hour's  work  in  getting  it  to  run.  They  picked 
up  Soliday,  Brown  and  South  worth,  '19,  president 
of  the  class,  and  drove  to  Springfield.  Here  they 
made  a  thorough  search  of  the  railroad  station 
but  nothing  was  found.  The  Odd  Classmen 
drove  around  the  neighboring  country  for  several 
hours  in  the  hopes  of  picking  up  a  trail.  The 
much  sought  car  seemed  ever  just  beyond  the 
next  rise  in  the  road,  and  great  was  the  disap- 
pointment of  these  men  as  they  returned  to 
Springfield  late  that  afternoon.  Resolved  to 
make  a  last  search,  they  explored  every  nook 
and  cranny  of  the  station,  and  it  was  not  until 
late  in  the  evening  that  they  turned  toward 
Amherst,  a  sorely  disappointed  lot. 

At  this  point  of  the  story  it  is  necessary  to 
digress  to  bring  to  light  matters  which  have 
been  kept  secret  for  a  long  time.  This  present 
publication  seems  to  be  a  good  opportunity  to 
present  another  side  of  the  Sabrina  Story,  which 
has  hitherto  been  an  unknown  quantity  in  this 


68  SABRINA 

most  exciting  episode  of  college  life.  The  facts 
for  the  story  have  been  presented  by  Bowman, 
'19,  and  we  have  followed  closely  his  account 
believing  that  it  portrays  one  of  the  most  inter- 
esting points  of  Sabrina  history. 

When  the  statue  of  Sabrina  was  originally 
made,  two  casts  were  drawn.  One  of  these  was 
given  to  Amherst  College  and  its  subsequent 
treatment  at  the  hands  of  students,  its  removal 
from  the  campus,  its  revelation  to  the  men  of 
'90,  and  later  career,  are  too  well  known  to  men- 
tion in  detail  here. 

The  duplicate  of  this  statue  was  bought  by  a 
graduate  of  Cornell  University,  who  placed  it  in 
his  garden  at  his  home  in  a  town  in  North  Caro- 
lina. It  mysteriously  disappeared.  The  story 
from  here  on  was  told  to  Bowman  by  a  graduate 
of  Amherst  in  the  class  of  '96.  At  the  time  that 
Wheelock,  '11,  so  nearly  succeeded  in  capturing 
Sabrina  at  Buffalo  from  the  Even  Classmen, 
he  traced  it  to  the  house  of  Staples,  '96,  a 
former  guardian.  Here  all  trace  of  the  statue 
was  lost  after  an  unsuccessful  attempt  to  outwit 
the  former  Even  Class  custodian's  wife.  This 
event  attracted  considerable  attention  and  the 
newspapers  featured  it.  Various  articles  con- 
cerning the  attempted  capture  came  to  the  notice 
of  the  Cornell  graduate,  and  he  employed  Pinker- 
ton  detectives  to  find  the  " Sabrina"  that  the 


NINETEEN  EIGHTEEN  69 

accounts  so  glaringly  told  of,  in  the  hopes  that 
it  might  prove  to  be  the  one  which  had  vanished 
from  his  garden.  It  is  recorded  that  the  Pinker- 
tons  were  successful  in  their  attempt  to  find  the 
lost  property,  and  that  they  actually  did  get 
possession  of  a  Sabrina.  However,  it  is  also  a 
fact  that  a  Sabrina  made  a  subsequent  appear- 
ance under  the  guardianship  of  an  Even  Class- 
man. The  Cornell  graduate  took  the  Sabrina 
which  had  been  restored  to  him,  to  his  summer 
home  on  Lake  Erie,  near  Buffalo,  and  again  placed 
her  in  his  garden. 

Bowman  heard  about  this  duplicate  Sabrina 
and  went  to  the  Cornell  graduate,  offering  to  buy 
the  statue,  but  its  owner  refused  to  part  with  it. 
The  story  of  the  '96  men  had  made  such  an  im- 
pression upon  Bowman  that  he  resolved  to  obtain 
the  statue  no  matter  what  the  risk  might  be. 
He,  accordingly,  pursuaded  a  friend  of  his,  who 
singularly  enough,  was  a  Cornell  student  of  the 
class  of  1919,  to  go  with  him  to  get  the  statue. 
The  home  of  the  Cornell  graduate  was  within 
driving  distance  of  Bowman's  house  in  James- 
town. Taking  along  another  friend,  a  Univer- 
sity of  Pennsylvania  man,  they  set  out  in  two 
cars,  one  of  which  was  to  be  used  to  block  any 
pursuers  in  case  they  were  followed.  Both  these 
cars  were  of  the  same  model  and  make.  Arriv- 
ing at  their  destination  between  three  and  four 


70  SABRINA 

in  the  morning,  they  left  the  machines  near  the 
road  and  entered  the  garden.  Here  they  found 
the  statue  reposing  peacefully  in  the  middle  of 
the  garden.  Quietly  they  lifted  it  from  its 
resting  place,  put  it  in  the  car  and  bore  it  away. 
Making  sure  that  no  one  was  following,  the 
two  cars  parted,  going  in  different  directions,  to 
throw  off  possible  pursuit. 

This  statue  was  hidden  in  Jamestown,  New 
York,  where  it  remained  until  early  in  the  year 
1917.  Bowman,  at  the  advice  of  Southworth, 
whom  he  had  told  of  his  capture,  decided  to 
bring  Sabrina  nearer  to  Amherst  with  the  end  in 
view  of  taking  advantage  of  any  opportunity 
that  might  present  itself.  Accordingly,  he 
shipped  it  to  Greenfield  in  his  Sophomore  year 
just  after  Christmas,  and  had  it  securely  hid- 
den in  a  safe  deposit  vault  in  a  bank  in  that 
town.  It  stayed  here  undisturbed  during  the 
rest  of  the  year,  and  after  college  had  closed, 
Bowman  had  it  taken  back  to  New  York  state 
where  he  concealed  it  in  a  hay-mow  on  a  farm 
near  his  home  during  the  summer. 

In  the  fall  Bowman  returned  to  college,  leav- 
ing the  statue  behind  him.  Bowman  brought 
this  matter  to  the  attention  of  Soliday  and 
Seward  and  these  men,  together  with  Southworth 
decided  to  bring  Bowman's  statue  nearer  to  Am- 
herst; by  singular  coincidence  the  statue  arrived 


NINETEEN  EIGHTEEN  71 

about  three  weeks  before  the  appearance  of  theSa- 
brina  of  the  Even  Classes  recorded  above.  Accord- 
ingly, it  was  shipped  to  South  Hadley,  in  care  of 
Philip  Stacy/ 19,  who  lived  there.  Here  it  was  kept 
in  a  tool  house  belonging  to  Mt.  Holyoke  College. 

As  an  interesting  side  light  on  the  appearance 
of  Sabrina  that  had  taken  place  on  the  morning 
recorded  above,  the  idea  which  took  shape  in  the 
now  famous  dual  appearance  of  Sabrina,  oc- 
curred to  the  Odd  Classmen  as  they  were  return- 
ing from  Springfield  after  their  vain  search  for 
the  Goddess.  They  decided  to  bring  Bowman's 
Sabrina  through  Amherst  in  the  hopes  that  the 
Even  Classmen  should  be  so  upset  that  they 
would  disclose  immediately  the  hiding  place  of 
their  statue  and  that  they  would  thus  be  able  to 
get  both  statues  of  Sabrina. 

The  plans  of  the  Odd  Classmen  differed  some- 
what from  those  which  had  been  made  for  the 
showing  on  the  previous  day.  Southworth 
was  to  make  an  announcement  in  Chapel  that 
Sabrina  was  outside  on  the  Holyoke  Road  in 
the  hands  of  the  class  of  1919.  It  was  known  to 
the  Odd  Classmen  that  Johnson  was  the  official 
guardian  of  the  class  of  1918,  and  accordingly, 
Southworth  and  Tilton  were  told  off  to  watch 
him  during  the  entire  day,  to  see  if  he  made  any 
telephone  calls,  and  to  report  these  at  once. 
Estey  was  placed  under  like  surveillance. 


72  SABRINA 

As  a  precaution,  several  Freshman  were  to  be 
posted  along  the  Holyoke  Road,  to  stand  guard 
around  the  statue  in  case  any  Even  Classmen 
succeeded  in  breaking  through  the  crowd  of 
Odds  that  was  to  form  around  Chapel  door. 
At  six  o'clock  that  morning,  after  only  a  few 
hours  sleep,  Soliday,  Brown,  Bowman,  Stacy  and 
Seward,  '19,  went  to  South  Hadley  in  Hallock's 
Packard,  where  they  took  the  statue  out  of 
the  tool  house.  After  placing  it  on  the  back 
seat  of  the  car  they  covered  it  with  blankets 
and  drove  quickly  towards  Amherst.  On  the 
way  they  paused  for  breakfast  at  a  farm  house 
on  the  outskirts  of  the  town  just  beyond  Mount 
Doma.  At  8:15,  just  as  Chapel  was  starting, 
the  car  arrived  in  Amherst,  and  to  kill  time  until 
Chapel  should  be  let  out  the  men  drove  around 
Pratt  Field,  up  the  Hamp  Road,  past  the  Psi 
U.  House,  and  down  the  Holyoke  Road,  where 
they  waited  for  several  minutes.  At  this  junc- 
ture Andy  Clark,  '20,  drove  by  in  a  car.  The 
Odd  Classmen  were  much  alarmed,  for  they 
had  been  up  all  night,  the  guardianship  of 
Sabrina  was  a  new  and  thrilling  experience 
for  them  and  they  were  ready  to  jump  at  the 
slightest  suspicious  sign.  The  Freshmen  who 
were  posted  along  the  road  promptly  seized  the 
intruder  and  held  him,  preventing  his  further 
advance. 


NINETEEN  EIGHTEEN  73 

Just  as  a  thrilling  announcement  had  been 
made  the  day  before  in  Johnson  Chapel,  so  now 
was  the  student  body  electrified  to  hear  South- 
worth  announce  in  shaky  voice, "  If  any  one  would 
like  to  see  the  real  Sabrina,  they  will  find  her  at 
the  foot  of  the  hill  on  the  Holyoke  Road  in  the 
hands  of  the  class  of  1919."  Pandemonium 
broke  loose.  Odd  Classmen  gave  vent  to  their 
feelings  of  astonishment  and  joy  in  unrestrained 
howls,  among  which  could  be  heard  "  All  Hails." 
Everyone  made  a  rush  for  the  nearest  door,  and 
the  result  was  a  finer  scrimmage  than  was 
ever  before  seen  at  a  Chapel  or  Flag  rush. 

Far  down  the  hill  on  the  road  to  Holyoke, 
raised  high  in  the  rear  of  Hallock's  car,  reposed  a 
shining  statue  of  the  Goddess  Sabrina,  sur- 
rounded by  the  men  of  the  Class  of  Nineteen 
Nineteen.  Even  Classmen  rushed  towards-  it 
but  were  tripped  by  opposing  Odds,  and  to- 
gether, they  rolled  down  the  embankment  in  a 
melee  of  flying  legs  and  arms.  The  few  men  who 
succeeded  in  approaching  the  car  were  quickly 
laid  low  by  the  faithful  Freshmen  as  the  car 
slowly  moved  off  down  the  road  and  was  soon 
lost  to  sight. 

The  statue  was  immediately  taken  back  to 
Stacy's  house  and  the  men  returned  to  college 
where  they  attended  classes  during  the  morning, 
having  previously  detoured  through  Holyoke 


74  SABRINA 

and  Northampton  to  avoid  suspicion.  The 
excitement  of  the  occasion  proved  too  intense 
and  late  that  afternoon  several  of  the  men  who 
had  taken  part  in  the  escapade,  together  with 
Dave  Craig,  '17,  slipped  quietly  out  of  town  and 
went  to  South  Hadley  where  they  took  the 
statue  to  Northampton  and  hid  it  in  a  wood 
pile  in  the  cellar  of  the  house  of  a  friend  of 
Craig's. 

All  that  day  excitement  was  intense  through- 
out the  college.  Southworth  and  Tilt  on  made 
every  effort  to  shadow  Johnson  and  Estey,  but 
discovered  no  telephone  calls.  In  fact,  Johnson's 
first  thought  was  to  telephone,  but  divining  the 
real  intent  of  the  Odd  Classmen  in  planning  this 
appearance,  he  deterred.  Later  in  the  morning 
he  and  Estey  succeeded  in  getting  away  from 
town  by  a  back  road  and  went  promptly 
to  Northampton  where  they  telephoned  the 
owners  of  the  barn  in  which  Sabrina  was 
hidden.  A  search  was  made  and  everything  was 
found  in  good  shape.  They  then  returned  to 
Amherst. 

In  the  meantime,  the  Odd  Classmen,  having 
failed  in  their  attempt  to  trace  calls  from  Am- 
herst, tried  to  find  out  if  any  calls  could  be  dis- 
covered in  Northampton.  They  got  in  touch 
with  the  manager  of  the  Telephone  Company 
but  this  official  proved  a  faithful  ally  of  the  Even 


H.  F.  JOHNSON 
1918  Guardian 


NINETEEN  EIGHTEEN  75 

Classmen,  for  he  steadfastly  refused  to  give  any 
information  whatsoever  about  Johnson's  call. 
Thus,  the  attempt  to  trace  the  Sabrina,  which 
had  appeared  the  previous  day,  failed. 

Considerable  doubt  reigned  in  Amherst  as 
to  which  statue  was  the  real  Sabrina.  Odd 
Classmen,  of  course,  claimed  that  theirs  was 
the  original,  and  their  opinions  were  voiced  more 
strongly  because  of  their  lack  of  conviction. 
Even  Classmen  were  soon  reassured  that  their 
Goddess  was  undisturbed  and  the  dispute  showed 
no  signs  of  settlement,  so  a  committee  was 
appointed,  the  members  of  which  were  selected 
from  the  classes  of  1918  and  1919:  Johnson, 
Estey,  Morehouse,  for  the  former;  Soliday, 
Bowman,  Southworth  and  Seward  for  the  latter. 
These  two  sides  presented  their  cases  in  an 
attempt  to  come  to  a  settlement.  The  Odd 
Classmen  took  the  position  that  Bowman's 
story  was  irrefutable,  but  that  they  felt  that 
because  of  the  tradition  it  would  be  desirable  for 
them  to  waive  their  claims  to  Sabrina  on  condi- 
tion that  the  Even  Classmen  agree  to  certain 
rules  to  govern  the  conduct  of  Sabrina  warfare 
in  the  future,  which  were  proposed  by  them. 
Bowman  stuck  to  the  story  through  thick  and 
thin,  and  the  upshot  of  the  whole  matter  was 
that  the  rules  were  drawn  up  and  adopted.  A 
set  of  these  rules  is  reprinted  below. 


76  SABRINA 

AMHERST,  MASS.,  April  10,  1918. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  Student: 
SIR: 

The  situation  that  has  arisen  in  the  recent  appearance 
of  Sabrina  has  involved  serious  danger  to  the  permanence 
of  the  tradition  and  so  demands  explanation  and  a  clear- 
ing up  of  issues. 

The  1919  Committee  has  had  in  its  possession  for  over  a 
year,  in  anticipation  for  an  opportune  moment  for  show- 
ing its  hand,  a  bronze  statue  of  Sabrina,  whose  identity 
they  trace  to  a  clouded  period  about  ten  years  ago,  at 
which  time  a  confusion  of  identity  is  claimed.  Realizing 
the  dangers  to  the  tradition  of  Sabrina,  if  a  second  goddess 
is  brought  on  the  scene,  a  conference  of  the  1918  and  1919 
Committees  was  called,  the  outcome  of  which  was  as 
follows : 

The  Odd  Classmen  are  willing  to  withdraw  the  claims 
of  their  statue,  so  that  only  one  may  still  be  in  the  field 
of  endeavor,  and  to  leave  the  guardianship  of  the  tradi- 
tion in  the  hands  of  the  Even  Classmen. 

It  was  agreed,  for  the  furthering  of  a  more  lively  inter- 
est than  has  been  apparent  for  some  years,  that  the  follow- 
ing conditions  govern  the  contest: 

1.  That  the  statue  be  produced  before  the  college  body 
at  least  once  a  year,  and  that  during  the  last  twelve  weeks 
of  the  college  year.     It  is  understood  that  in  the  years  of 
the  Sabrina  Banquets  the  appearance  may  be  in  either 
the  first  or  the  last  twelve  weeks  of  the  college  year. 

2.  That  artificial  guards  such  as  safety  deposit  vaults, 
storage  in  the  hands  of  express  or  railroad  companies,  or 
like  methods  of  taking  the  guardianship  out  of  the  hands 
of  the  committee,  and  so  making  it  an  offense  against  the 


NINETEEN  EIGHTEEN  77 

law  to  attempt  securing  the  statue,  be  considered  as 
against  the  rules  of  the  contest. 

3.  That  in  the  event  of  private  houses,  or  other  private 
buildings  or  property,  being  used  as  storage  places,  the 
committee  in  charge  of  the  statue  assumes  sole  and  com- 
plete responsibility  for  the  charge  of  burglary. 

It  is  agreed  by  both  parties  that  the  introduction  of 
statues  other  than  the  Sabrina  now  held  by  the  Even 
Classmen  be  barred. 

The  joint  committee  wishes  it  emphatically  pointed 
out  that  on  the  basis  of  the  foregoing  statements  it  is 
obviously  advisable  that  wagers  be  declared  off. 
(Signed) 

HAROLD  F.  JOHNSON  '18, 
J.  P.  ESTEY  '18, 
E.  W.  MOREHOUSE  '18, 
THEODORE  SOUTHWORTH  '19, 
DAVID  S.  SOLIDAY  '19, 
HALVOR  R.  SEWARD  '19, 
MORRIS  L.  BOWMAN  '19. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Sabrina  and  the  non-Sabrina  com- 
mittees held  in  Amherst  on  November  16th,  1919,  the 
following  rules  were  added  to  the  above. 

1.  The  use  of  firearms  in  connection  with  any  Sabrina 
or  non-Sabrina  activities,  for  any  purpose  whatsoever, 
shall  be  prohibited. 

2.  There  shall  be  a  committee  known  as  the  Sabrina 
Rules  Committee  consisting  of  three  members  of  each 
of  the  two  upper  classes.     The  chairman  of  the  joint 
committee  shall  be  the  chairman  of  the  Senior  group  and 
the  secretary  shall  be  the  chairman  of  the  Junior  group. 

3.  The  committee  shall  have  the  power  to   revise, 
correct  and  interpret  the  rules  governing  Sabrina  and 


78  SABRINA 

non-Sabrina  activities,  to  investigate  supposed  violations 
of  these  rules  and  to  take  such  action  as  they  deem  wise 
to  enforce  these  rules. 

4.  A  majority  of  the  membership  of  the  committee 
shall  be  necessary  to  legislate. 

(Signed) 

GEORGE  D.  HASKELL  '20, 
E.  ORLOW  CLARK  JR.,  '20, 
KENNETH  B.  Low  '20, 
R.  S.  SCHLEI^HER  '21, 
WALDO  E.  PALMER  '21, 
WALTER  N.  ZINK  '21. 

At  the  time  these  events  took  place  both  the 
Even  and  Odd  Classmen,  as  is  evidenced  by  the 
rules  agreed  to  by  1918  and  1919,  were  convinced 
that  the  two  statues  were  closely  connected  at 
some  time  and  that  there  was  some  doubt  as  to 
the  identity  of  the  original  Sabrina.  However, 
this  confusion  did  not  take  place  in  Buffalo  as  it 
has  since  been  stated  by  Charles  Staples  '96  that 
so  far  as  he  knew  there  was  only  one  Sabrina  in 
the  hands  of  the  Even  Classmen  at  that  time. 

After  this,  college  quieted  down  and  Sabrina 
was  not  to  be  the  center  of  attraction  for  quite 
some  time  to  come.  While  the  Odd  Class  at- 
tempt to  shadow  Sabrina  had  totally  failed,  they 
had  made  another  great  stride  towards  capturing 
the  Goddess.  This  was  the  first  time  since  the 
famous  attempt  of  Wheelock,  '11,  to  capture 
Sabrina  that  the  Even  Class  guardians  had  con- 


NINETEEN  EIGHTEEN  79 

sidered  themselves  in  a  position  which  was  at  all 
dangerous.  In  a  way  it  was  a  moral  victory  for 
the  Odd  Classes,  for  it  gave  them  the  oppor- 
tunity to  introduce  rules  which  would  go  far 
towards  making  the  affair  less  one-sided.  Bow- 
man's statue  mysteriously  disappeared,  never  to 
be  seen  again,  in  accordance  with  these  rules,  by 
Odd  or  Even  Classmen,  as  it  was  agreed  that  the 
Sabrina  in  possession  of  the  Even  Classes  should 
be  considered  the  Sabrina  for  the  possession  of 
which  the  Odd  Classes  should  fight. 


NINETEEN  TWENTY 

ACCORDING  to  information  furnished 
by  Kenneth  B.  Low,  the  1920  guardian, 
Sabrina  came  into  the  hands  of  that  class 
early  in  the  spring  of  1919.  It  had  been  imprac- 
ticable to  turn  her  over  to  the  new  guardian  dur- 
ing the  previous  Spring  as  would  normally  have 
happened,  for  a  variety  of  reasons.  The  college 
was  in  a  disorganized  state;  many  men  had  left 
for  service  in  the  armed  forces  of  the  country,  and 
among  these  were  See,  Johnson  and  Estey,  all  of 
whom  had  been  closely  connected  with  recent 
Sabrina  activities.  A  total  submersion  of  college 
ideas  to  war  spirit  made  it  seem  inadvisable  to 
plan  very  much  with  respect  to  Sabrina,  and  as  a 
result  nothing  was  done  about  handing  her 
down  to  the  succeeding  class. 

After  the  Armistice  college  reopened  and 
many  men  who  had  been  absent  returned  to 
take  up  their  activities.  By  the  time  college 
had  once  more  resumed  its  customary  pre-war 
aspect,  it  was  decided  to  turn  the  Goddess  over 
to  the  class  of  1920.  Hal  Johnson,  '18,  who  had 
acted  as  guardian,  was  in  the  West  at  this  time 
and  it  devolved  upon  Estey  to  manipulate  the 
transfer.  Paul  Phillips,  president  of  the  class 
of  1920,  and  Low  were  instructed  early  in  the 

80 


NINETEEN  TWENTY  81 

Spring  of  1919  to  meet  Estey  in  a  certain  room 
of  a  hotel  in  Springfield  one  Sunday  afternoon. 
They  reported  there  and  were  officially  intrusted 
with  the  care  of  the  Goddess. 

Sabrina,  as  has  been  said  before,  was  at  this 
time  hidden  in  a  pile  of  hay  in  a  large  yellow 
barn  adjoining  the  house  belonging  to  a  friend  of 
Ed  Morehouse,  a  few  miles  out  of  Westfield  on  the 
road  to  Springfield.  After  the  conference  called 
by  Estey,  the  new  guardians  were  driven  in 
Estey's  car  to  the  barn  where  the  men  of  '20 
were  acquainted  with  the  details  of  the  hiding 
place.  No  attempt  was  made  to  move  the  statue 
at  this  time  and  they  returned  quietly  to  college. 

It  was  planned  to  hold  the  banquet  at  which 
Sabrina  should  be  formally  presented  to  the  class 
of  1920  at  Worcester.  This  spot  was  chosen 
because  it  was  convenient  and  offered  good 
facilities  for  transporting  the  entire  class  to  the 
banquet  at  short  notice.  The  banquet  was  to 
be  held  at  the  Hotel  Bancroft  and  particular 
pains  were  taken  that  a  safe  and  easy  means  of 
entrance  and  exit  of  the  statue  from  the  room 
should  be  provided.  All  necessary  safeguards 
were  taken  at  the  hotel.  It  was  decided  to 
transport  the  entire  class  from  Pratt  Field  to 
Worcester  by  automobile  and  Stanley  Ayers, 
'20,  was  given  charge  of  this  part  of  the  program. 
This  was  a  new  and  novel  undertaking  and  in- 


82  SABRINA 

volved  considerable  planning;  it  was  at  first 
thought  that  it  might  be  a  difficult  matter  to 
obtain  so  many  cars  from  the  neighborhood 
without  arousing  suspicion  as  to  what  was  on  foot. 
When  all  the  preliminary  arrangements  had 
been  made,  the  next  step  was  to  move  the  statue. 
Estey  furnished  two  cars,  one  a  Premier  which 
he  drove  himself  and  in  which  the  statue  was 
carried,  the  other  a  car  owned  by  a  resident  of 
Brattleboro.  This  was  to  be  used  as  a  follow-up 
car.  These  cars  came  down  from  Brattleboro 
by  previous  arrangement,  and  met  the  delegation 
from  Amherst;  Olsen,  Kilby,  Card  and  Low,  '20, 
and  also  See,  '18,  who  had  come  from  Boston  for 
the  occasion,  at  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of 
the  banquet,  in  Northampton.  The  cars  then 
proceeded  to  West  Springfield  where  Sabrina 
was  taken  out  from  beneath  the  hay-mow  and 
placed  in  Estey 's  car  and  covered  with  robes. 
The  side  curtains  were  put  in  place  and  the  ride 
for  Worcester  started.  Avoiding  crowded  roads 
they  proceeded,  and  no  mishaps  were  en- 
countered, until  the  cavalcade  reached  the  out- 
skirts of  Worcester.  Here  a  tire  blew  out  on  the 
follow-up  car  and  a  delay  was  inevitable.  While 
repairs  were  being  made,  the  car  with  Sabrina 
was  hidden  behind  some  old  houses  a  short  dis- 
tance off  the  main  road.  There  were  still  two 
or  three  hours  left  before  the  appearance  of 


K.  B.  LOW 

1920  Guardian 


NINETEEN  TWENTY  83 

Sabrina  at  the  banquet  was  scheduled,  so  the 
cars  moved  slowly  through  the  town,  taking  side 
streets  and  doubling  back  on  their  trail  in  an 
effort  to  kill  time.  After  dawdling  as  long  as 
possible,  the  cars  drew  up  in  a  dark  alley  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Worcester  Academy,  some  dis- 
tance from  the  hotel.  Here  the  group  waited 
while  Low  proceeded  on  foot  to  the  Bancroft  to 
see  if  the  coast  was  clear  and  the  plans  working 
smoothly.  He  discovered  that  all  was  well, 
and  hurried  back  to  the  cars. 

After  another  long  wait  they  proceeded  to  the 
Bancroft.  They  drew  up  to  a  side  door  and 
Sabrina  was  carried  in  and  placed  in  a  room  ad- 
joining the  banquet  hall  to  await  her  appearance. 
Meanwhile,  the  class  had  arrived  at  the  ap- 
pointed hour  and  after  the  usual  delay  of  such 
functions,  was  seated  at  the  tables.  At  a  signal 
from  the  toastmaster  the  doors  were  thrown 
open  and  Sabrina  was  ushered  into  the  room. 
The  applause  and  enthusiastic  cheering  having 
subsided,  Phil  See  presented  the  Goddess  to  the 
class  of  1920,  and  intrusted  her  to  their  ever- 
lasting care.  After  this,  the  time-old  custom  of 
kissing  the  fair  Goddess  followed.  Then  she  was 
taken  out  as  she  had  come  in,  put  back  into  the 
automobile  and  taken  back  to  her  hiding  place 
in  the  barn  in  West  Springfield  by  Estey  and 
some  of  the  others  who  had  brought  her  down. 


84  SABRINA 

The  next  appearance  of  Sabrina  was  a  month 
or  so  later  and  took  place  at  the  Sophomore 
Smoker  of  the  class  of  1920.  It  had  been 
thought  that  the  hiding  place  was  known,  and 
accordingly  it  was  decided  to  move  the  Goddess 
to  a  farm  house  in  Belchertown.  Bill  Cowles, 
'20,  had  arranged  to  have  the  statue  hidden  here 
and  had  seen  to  it  that  a  pit  was  dug  under  the 
floor  of  a  small  wagon  house  infrequently  used. 
Mrs.  Cowles  made  a  canvas  slip  cover  for  the 
Goddess  which  was  kept  in  readiness  for  her 
arrival.  It  was  planned  to  remove  the  statue 
to  this  hiding  place  immediately  after  the  appear- 
ance at  the  Smoker. 

To  bring  Sabrina  through  town,  a  Packard  was 
hired  in  Springfield  from  its  owner.  Cliff  Nash, 
'20,  also  offered  to  help  the  project  with  his  own 
car.  It  was  decided  to  have  Cowles,  Wood  and 
DeKlyn,  '20,  remove  Sabrina  from  the  West 
Springfield  barn  in  the  Packard.  These  men 
were  to  arrive  at  an  appointed  time  on  the  even- 
ing of  the  Smoker  just  beyond  the  underpass  at 
the  foot  of  College  Street.  Here  they  were  to 
be  met  by  four  men  in  Nash's  car,  including 
besides  Nash,  Olsen,  Anthony  and  Wilbar  '20. 
Low,  the  guardian,  was  not  to  meet  the  statue 
at  the  underpass,  for  he  was  scheduled  to  appear 
in  the  College  Quartet  to  sing  at  the  Smoker. 
Thinking  that  his  unexplained  absence  from  the 


NINETEEN  TWENTY  85 

quartet  would  arouse  suspicion  he  decided  to  go 
through  with  his  part  in  the  program  and  join 
the  party  later.  Accordingly,  that  afternoon  the 
Packard  set  out,  having  been  met  by  Cowles, 
Wood  and  DeKlyn,  who  had  slipped  away  from 
college  unobserved,  and  they  went  to  the 
barn  in  West  Springfield  where  they  secured 
the  statue.  They  proceeded  slowly  towards 
Amherst. 

Meanwhile,  things  began  to  happen  thick 
and  fast,  which  almost  culminated  in  the  sur- 
render of  the  plan  to  bring  the  statue  through. 
Before  the  college  body  assembled  at  the  Smoker, 
several  non-Sabrina  men  approached  Low. 
Among  these  were  Plimpton,  President  of  the 
class  of  1921,  who  inquired  point  blank  whether 
Sabrina  was  to  appear  that  evening.  Low  was 
almost  thrown  off  his  guard  by  the  suddenness  of 
this  question  but  finally  managed  to  throw  the 
Odd  Classman  off  the  track.  The  Smoker  began 
and  all  went  well  through  the  performance.  At 
the  close  of  the  selections  rendered  by  the  quartet, 
Plimpton,  who  was  presiding  at  the  meeting, 
called  upon  Low  to  lead  the  singing  for  the  re- 
mainder of  the  evening.  Low  knew  that  the  cars 
bearing  Sabrina  were  by  this  time  at  the  under- 
pass and  that  the  men  would  be  waiting  for  him 
impatiently,  for  his  appearance  was  to  be  the  sig- 
nal to  begin  operations.  Because  of  this,  he  pro- 


86  SABRINA 

tested  his  inability  to  lead  the  singing,  giving  as 
an  excuse  a  severe  cold  and  a  husky  voice  which 
had  already  been  strained.  In  spite  of  protest 
and  considerable  suspicion,  he  left  the  building 
and  walked  slowly  to  the  underpass  where  he 
joined  the  waiting  party. 

By  this  time,  the  driver  of  the  Packard  had 
become  slightly  worried  by  the  show  of  guns, 
clubs  and  other  weapons  in  the  car,  and  the 
tense  atmosphere  of  warfare  that  overhung  the 
situation.  He  refused  point  blank  to  carry  out 
the  plan,  valuing  his  own  life  more  than  the  suc- 
cess of  the  prank  of  irresponsible  college  men. 
After  much  persuasion  he  was  finally  induced  to 
go  on,  being  reassured  that  the  danger  was  slight 
and  that  the  real  purpose  of  the  heavy  armament 
that  was  carried  was  only  a  bluff.  At  the  pre- 
determined moment  the  cars  moved  forward  up 
College  Street,  the  Packard  in  the  lead,  with 
Nash  following.  They  turned  to  the  left  past  the 
Library,  and  then  swung  to  the  right  toward 
College  Hall.  When  Prexy's  house  was  reached 
the  cars  halted.  A  shot  was  fired  to  announce 
their  arrival  by  Tuttle,  '20,  who  was  posted  at 
the  doorway  of  College  Hall,  and  the  cry  "Sa- 
brina!,"  was  heard.  A  rush  for  the  doors  fol- 
lowed, but  when  the  crowd  reached  the  open  air 
the  cars  slowly  drove  away  down  the  Holyoke 
Road  gathering  speed  as  they  went.  Even  the 


NINETEEN   TWENTY  87 

few  people  who  succeeded  in  getting  out  of  the 
building,  were  only  fortunate  enough  to  see  the 
Goddess  as  she  was  borne  away.  The  appear- 
ance had  been  cut  short  by  the  activity  of  Odd 
Classmen  and  the  nervous  tension  to  which  the 
guardian  and  his  aides  had  been  worked  up. 
The  Packard  speeded  up  and  hummed  down 
across  the  Railroad  Bridge  with  the  follow-up 
car  close  behind.  At  this  point,  a  car  was  seen 
heading  across  the  road  from  the  right  but  the 
car  bearing  Sabrina  kept  on  at  full  speed  and 
managed  to  beat  the  pursuing  car  to  the  main 
road  at  the  Golf  Links.  The  second  car  driven 
by  Nash,  also  got  in  just  ahead  of  the  pursuer, 
which  proved  to  be  a  non-Sabrina  Packard. 
The  Odd  Classmen  had  guessed  the  plans  of  the 
escapade  correctly  and  had  been  lying  low  here 
for  just  such  a  clash.  This  was  probably  the 
wildest  ride  which  was  ever  taken  by  three  ma- 
chines over  the  Holyoke  Road.  The  Packard 
bearing  Sabrina  soon  drew  far  into  the  lead  of 
the  second  car,  which  barred  pursuit  of  the  non- 
Sabrina  men  by  blocking  the  road,  for  some  time. 
The  Odd  Classmen  opened  fire  on  Nash's  car  at 
close  range,  and  one  shot  pierced  a  tire.  Nash, 
after  bumping  wildly  from  one  side  of  the  road 
to  the  other,  thought  the  time  had  come  for  him 
to  drop  out  of  the  race,  for  his  car  was  disabled, 
and  if  he  were  to  effectually  block  the  pursuing 


88  SABRINA 

car  he  must  travel  at  a  high  rate  of  speed,  not 
only  endangering  his  own  life,  but  those  of  the 
men  following.  Accordingly,  he  slowed  down 
and  drew  off  to  the  side  of  the  road.  The  non- 
Sabrina  car  seized  this  opportunity  and  dashed 
by,  speeding  up  on  its  pursuit  of  the  Sabrina  car, 
which  was  by  this  time  well  over  the  Notch  and 
out  of  sight. 

The  Even  Class  Packard  after  descending  the 
opposite  slope  of  the  Notch  swerved  across  a 
bridge  to  a  cross  road  which  they  had  previously 
planned  to  take  in  event  of  pursuit.  The  driver 
was  not  familiar  with  this  road  and  this  fact 
almost  caused  an  upset.  As  it  was,  Cowles  nar- 
rowly averted  disaster  by  quickly  grasping  the 
wheel.  The  Packard  then  started  off  at  a  good 
clip  for  the  hiding  place  in  Belchertown,  Cowles 
guiding  the  way  as  he  knew  the  countryside  well. 
By  taking  many  cross-cuts  and  detours  the  pur- 
suing car  was  completely  thrown  off  the  trail, 
and  by  midnight  Sabrina  was  safely  deposited  in 
her  new  under-ground  home. 

Nothing  more  was  seen  of  the  Goddess,  al- 
though many  rumors  were  heard,  until  the  day 
of  the  Williams  game  in  November  1919.  The 
men  in  charge  of  Sabrina  had  decided  upon  a 
new  and  daring  exploit  by  which  she  could  be 
shown  to  the  whole  college  body  for  a  consider- 
able period  of  time.  This  year  the  Williams 


NINETEEN  TWENTY  89 

game  was  played  at  Williamstown,  and  as  is  the 
usual  custom  a  special  train  was  hired  to  convey 
the  student  body  to  the  game.  The  train  left 
Amherst  early  Saturday  morning  bearing  some 
four  hundred  and  fifty  undergraduates.  The 
day  was  fine  and  all  were  looking  forward  to  the 
game  with  considerable  pleasure  and  anticipa- 
tion. As  the  train  drew  near  the  steeps  of  the 
Mohawk  Trail,  the  students  were  quietly  reading 
magazines  or  playing  bridge  on  improvised 
tables  in  the  train  seats. 

A  little  river  runs  parallel  with  the  tracks  of 
the  railroad  for  several  miles  near  Charlemont. 
Suddenly  a  cry  "Sabrina"  was  heard  through- 
out the  length  of  the  train,  and  pushing  to  the 
windows,  the  astonished  men  beheld  sailing  along 
the  road  across  the  river  a  car  bearing  Sabrina. 
The  train  was  moving  at  a  good  pace  but  the 
automobile  kept  pace  with  it  for  several  miles, 
now  speeding  along  an  open  stretch,  now  dodging 
behind  an  intervening  hillock  or  mass  of  rocks, 
only  to  appear  again  after  a  short  interval.  The 
Even  Classmen  were  filled  with  joy  at  the  suc- 
cess of  the  feat,  and  Odd  Classmen  gnashed  their 
teeth  in  vain,  realizing  that  the  train  could  not 
be  made  to  stop,  and  that  even  if  it  did  their 
chances  of  crossing  the  river  in  time  to  reach  the 
fleet  car  bearing  Sabrina  were  very  slim.  After 
a  while  the  men  in  the  train  calmed  down  and 


90  SABRINA 

the  statue  disappeared  around  a  bend  in  the 
road. 

The  arrangements  for  this  escapade  were  few 
but  complete.  The  men  in  charge  of  the  show- 
ing of  Sabrina  were  DeKlyn,  Cowles,  Wood  and 
Low.  Read,  '20,  left  Amherst  on  a  motorcycle 
at  four  in  the  morning  and  reached  the  rendez- 
vous by  the  river  where  it  had  been  previously 
determined  that  he  should  meet  the  car  bearing 
Sabrina.  A  Packard,  hired  in  Springfield,  left 
Amherst  at  about  the  same  time,  picked  up 
Sabrina  in  Belchertown  and  reached  the  river 
about  seven  in  the  morning.  Here  the  car  and 
motorcycle  were  run  in  by  the  side  of  a  house 
near  the  road,  where  they  laid  in  wait  for  the  ap- 
proaching train.  The  engineer  had  been  sub- 
sidized for  the  performance  and  it  was  arranged 
that  he  should  give  three  blasts  of  the  whistle  as 
the  train  came  around  the  curve  that  there  might 
be  no  mistake  as  to  the  identity  of  the  train. 

During  the  morning  several  cars  filled  with 
Amherst  men  passed  by  on  the  road,  and  when 
finally  the  special  came  by  and  blew  the  signal 
the  Packard  drew  out  onto  the  road,  tagging  the 
fast  moving  train  for  six  miles.  About  a  mile 
before  Charlemont  was  reached,  the  Packard 
shot  ahead  up  the  steep  incline.  A  short  dis- 
tance outside  of  this  town  Sabrina  was  removed 
from  the  cars  and  hidden  in  a  deep  thicket  on  the 


NINETEEN  TWENTY  91 

edge  of  a  small  stream,  where  she  was  left  for  a 
few  days.  The  men  then  proceeded  to  Williams- 
town  and  the  game. 

Just  before  the  Packard  had  started  to  play 
tag  with  the  train,  Read,  who  was  following 
on  his  motorcycle,  had  seen  a  carload  of  non- 
Sabrina  men  speeding  along  in  an  effort  to  catch 
the  train.  They  were  approaching  rapidly  and 
danger  was  imminent.  Read  fell  upon  the  plan 
of  pleading  an  accident.  He  stopped  his  motor 
cycle,  and  halting  the  approaching  car  asked 
them  for  a  wrench  to  fix  his  machine,  which  was 
in  perfect  order.  After  tinkering  for  a  time  and 
allowing  the  Sabrina  car  to  get  out  of  danger, 
he  thanked  the  Odd  Classmen,  and  proceeded 
on  his  journey. 

Some  few  days  later,  a  suspicion  arose  in  the 
minds  of  the  Sabrina  guardian  that  her  location 
might  have  been  traced  to  Charlemont,  so  De- 
Klyn  and  Low  decided  to  move  her.  They 
obtained  a  Packard  belonging  to  Whittemore 
and  drove  to  the  hiding  place  on  a  pitch  black, 
rainy  night.  After  a  prolonged  and  gloomy 
search  they  unearthed  her  in  a  completely  frozen 
state,  and  carried  her  back  to  Belchertown  where 
she  was  buried  under  the  floor  of  the  tool  house. 
Here  she  remained  until  she  was  exhumed  to  be 
taken  to  the  Boston  banquet. 

For  purposes  of  presenting  an  impartial  view 


92  SABRINA 

on  the  episodes  of  Sabrina  which  occured  while 
the  classes  of  1919  and  1920  were  in  college,  it 
has  been  thought  advisable  to  reprint  here  the 
story  of  Odd  Class  activities  during  this  period, 
written  by  a  man  who  was  responsible  for  much 
of  the  doings  and  subsequent  successes  of  non- 
Sabrina  men,  David  S.  Soliday. 

With  the  new  year  of  1919  came  the  returning 
army  of  Amherst  men  to  their  Alma  Mater. 
Goat-rooms  were  dusted,  the  fraternity's  final 
preparation  to  receive  its  long  absent  brothers 
were  made;  Pratt  Dorm  and  old  North  and  South 
College  flung  open  their  doors  at  the  command  of 
Grigg's  Furniture  dray  to  receive  a  bevy  of 
time-worn  desks,  chairs  and  other  student  equip- 
ment; Prexy  and  Dean  Olds  consulted  with  the 
faculty  concerning  the  new  college;  College  Hall 
once  again  rang  with  the  "  cheer  for  Old  Amherst " 
and  speeches  of  her  loyal  sons.  Thus,  fired  with 
new  ambitions,  new  life,  and  new  thoughts,  the 
student  body  resumed  its  college  course. 

But  the  golden  glamor  of  that  fair  and  roman- 
tic goddess  of  truth  and  loyalty — Sabrina — had 
not  been  dulled  by  the  few  months — or  years — of 
olive  drab.  Secret  whispered  conferences  were 
held  by  small  groups;  "whens"  and  "wheres" 
were  asked.  And  the  class  of  1919  realized  more 
poignantly  than  ever  before  that  they  had  but  a 
few  remaining  months  in  Amherst  to  wrest  the 


NINETEEN  TWENTY  93 

elusive  goddess  from  the  hands  of  her  wily 
protectors. 

One  cold  evening  in  February,  the  first  meet- 
ing of  the  year  of  Anti-Sabrina  men  was  held  to 
discuss  the  best  means  of  capturing  the  much- 
sought  goddess  of  the  even  classes.  Deke  Darl- 
ing, president  of  the  class  of  1919,  Hal  Seward, 
president  of  Student  Council,  1919,  Dave  Soli- 
day,  1919,  Francis  Plimpton,  president  of  class 
of  1921,  and  Rowell  Schleicher,  1921,  composed 
this  little  group  of  serious  thinkers  and  would-be 
"sleuths." 

But  before  any  adequate  organization  could  be 
evolved  among  the  ranks  of  the  Odd  Classmen, 
which  were  somewhat  thinned  by  War  absences, 
1920  held  its  Sabrina  Banquet  at  Worcester. 
Plans  for  this  affair  were  successfully  laid  and 
carried  out  with  little  intimation  coming  to  the 
non-Sabrina  men  of  the  nature  of  the  project 
under  way  before  it  actually  took  place.  At- 
tempts were  made  to  trail  the  statue  after  it  had 
left  Worcester,  but  these  proved  to  be  ineffectual. 
Stan  Woodward,  '17,  was  called  over  the  tele- 
phone at  his  residence  in  Worcester  and  asked  to 
go  to  the  Bancroft  to  see  if  he  could  find  any 
trace  of  the  Goddess.  Woodward  proceeded  at 
once  to  the  banquet,  but  the  Goddess  had  gone. 
As  a  last  resort,  he  went  to  the  local  police  head- 
quarters, swore  out  a  warrant  for  the  arrest  of  the 


94  SABRINA 

men  in  charge  of  the  statue  on  the  charge  of  har- 
boring property  stolen  from  Amherst  College. 
A  cordon  of  police  was  promptly  drawn  up 
around  the  outskirts  of  Worcester,  but  by  the 
time  the  arm  of  the  law  had  stretched  its  net, 
Sabrina  was  gone. 

Excitement  was  intense  that  night  in  Amherst. 
Various  rumors  were  on  foot  many  of  which  were 
plausible,  but  none  of  which  were  based  on  any 
reliable  foundation.  The  college  had  become 
addicted  to  rumor,  possibly  because  of  its  long 
stay  in  the  army,  where  rumors  of  a  well-known 
character  are  rife. 

Although  Odd  Class  attempts  to  shadow  the 
statue  on  this  occasion  were  unsuccessful,  plans 
were  made  and  subsequently  carried  out  in  great 
detail  for  an  elaborate  system  by  which  the  cap- 
ture of  Sabrina  might  be  effected.  Certain 
occupants  of  houses  on  each  of  the  main  roads 
leading  into  and  out  of  Amherst  were  interviewed, 
and  they  agreed  to  keep  a  sharp  lookout  for  any 
suspicious  looking  vehicles  which  might  pass 
their  houses,  and  to  keep  the  1919  chairman 
posted  in  the  event  of  any  going  by.  In  each 
Fraternity  two  or  three  men  of  the  Odd  Classes 
kept  a  watchful  eye  open  for  any  useful  informa- 
tion, and  kept  various  Even  Classmen,  who  were 
suspected  of  being  connected  in  some  way  with 
the  guardianship  and  most  recent  movement  of 


NINETEEN  TWENTY  95 

the  statue,  under  strict  surveillance.  During 
baseball  games,  or  at  times  when  the  entire  col- 
lege body  was  gathered  together  and  it  seemed 
probable  that  an  appearance  might  be  attempted, 
men  with  telescopes  watched  the  surrounding 
country  from  Chapel  Tower,  and  wig-wagged  to 
other  Odd  Classmen  on  the  roof  of  the  Beta 
Theta  Pi  House,  but  always  their  signals  read, 
" Nothing  in  Sight." 

No  detail  was  overlooked  that  might  help  the 
Odd  Classmen  capture  Sabrina.  Finally,  one 
day,  May  9,  1919,  word  was  received  about  noon 
that  the  Even  Class  had  chosen  that  evening  to 
show  Sabrina  before  a  gathering  at  College  Hall 
where  the  Sophomore  Smoker  was  to  be  held. 
Plans  were  immediately  laid  for  her  capture. 
Three  automobiles  were  hired,  and  certain  Odd 
Classmen  were  told  off  to  occupy  each  of  these, 
which  were  stationed  at  different  points;  one 
back  of  the  Psi  U  House,  one  on  the  road  to 
Northampton,  and  one  on  the  Holyoke  Road. 
All  were  near  telephones. 

At  the  appointed  time  that  evening,  Sabrina 
appeared  before  College  Hall.  A  search  light 
was  flashed  upon  her  for  a  second  and  then  she 
disappeared  in  mad  haste.  The  undergraduates 
and  the  guests  of  the  college  who  had  been  lis- 
tening to  the  program  at  the  Smoker  in  College 
Hall,  poured  out  on  the  terrace,  but  were  only 


96 


SABRINA 


successful  in  catching  a  fleeting  glimpse  of  the 
Goddess.  Pursuit  was  immediately  taken  up. 
Machines  in  waiting,  after  a  slight  delay,  gave 
chase.  The  Packard  which  had  been  hired  in 
Amherst  and  which  was  occupied  by  Schleicher, 
Hatheway,  Palmer  and  Zink,  '21,  managed  to 
creep  up  on  the  Even  Class  cars  on  the  Holyoke 
Road.  As  is  usual  in  planning  for  a  safe  retreat 
for  the  Goddess,  two  cars  were  employed. 
Sabrina  was  being  carried  in  a  special  Pack- 
ard, and  Nash  was  following  in  his  own  car. 
Schleicher  was  seated  in  the  back  seat  of  the 
non-Sabrina  car,  and  as  they  approached  Nash's 
car  he  suddenly  fired  several  shots  which  whizzed 
by  Hatheway's  ear.  One  of  them  reached  its 
mark  and  a  rear  tire  exploded  on  Nash's  car 
which  rolled  heavily  into  the  ditch,  and  the 
Packard  tore  by.  The  car  in  which  Sabrina 
was  being  carried  was  by  this  time  far  ahead, 
and  no  trace  of  it  could  be  found  on  the  road. 
Arriving  at  Holyoke,  the  men  decided  that  the 
Goddess  might  have  been  taken  to  Springfield, 
and  accordingly,  they  went  there.  Finding 
nothing  in  the  station  or  elsewhere  they  con- 
tinued to  Worcester  in  the  hopes  that  it  might  be 
the  Even  Class  plan  to  hide  it  in  the  Bancroft, 
and  that  they  might  arrive  there  in  time  to  pre- 
vent its  removal  to  the  hotel  storage  rooms,  but 
here  too  their  efforts  were  unrewarded. 


NINETEEN  TWENTY  97 

Immediately  after  Sabrina-had  gone  through, 
Seward  and  Soliday  obtained  a  car  from  North- 
ampton and  drove  leisurely  down  the  Holyoke 
Road  hoping  that  the  Even  Classmen,  after  hav- 
ing taken  a  side  road  to  allow  their  pursuers  to 
pass  them,  might  be  returning  over  the  same 
road  they  had  previously  travelled.  They  were 
the  more  firmly  convinced  that  this  was  the  plan 
of  the  Even  Classmen  for  they  had  recently 
learned  of  the  plans  formulated  by  1918,  one  of 
which  was  to  have  the  Goddess  appear  several 
times  in  succession  the  same  day,  and  they  hoped 
that  this  idea  might  have  taken  root.  However, 
Sabrina  was  by  this  time  far  away,  and  nothing 
of  any  importance  was  discovered  on  the  way  to 
Holyoke.  Arriving  there,  the  men  telephoned 
Amherst.  They  got  in  touch  with  Schleicher 
who  was  then  in  Springfield  and  sent  him  on  to 
Worcester  as  has  been  related  above.  After 
making  a  thorough  search  of  Holyoke  and  vicin- 
ity they  went  slowly  back  to  Amherst,  sorely 
disappointed. 

This  was  the  first  time  that  Sabrina  had  been 
followed  out  of  town  by  Odd  Classmen.  The 
pursuit  was  close,  and  the  affair  on  the  Notch, 
if  the  story  related  by  those  who  participated  in 
the  battle  can  be  given  credence,  was  a  fierce 
encounter  fraught  with  considerable  danger. 

All  through  that  night,  the  Odd  Classmen 


98 


SABRINA 


waited  for  news  of  the  capture  of  Sabrina,  but 
when  morning  came  the  pursuers  returned  with 
more  plans  and  plots  and  lots  of  ideas,  but  with- 
out Sabrina.  Brisk,  Palmer  and  Stanford  '21 
appeared  swathed  with  bandages.  They,  too,  had 
been  chasing  Sabrina  and  had  come  to  grief  at  the 
iron  bridge  which  spans  the  Freshman  River  on 
the  Holyoke  Road  beyond  the  powerhouse.  Their 
driver  had  been  at  the  wheel  for  many  hours  and 
sleep  overpowered  him  as  they  rounded  a  curve 
at  a  high  rate  of  speed.  Witnesses  who  have 
seen  the  spot  since,  declare  that  the  shock  of  the 
meeting  of  car  and  bridge  moved  the  steel  girders 
several  inches.  Be  this  as  it  may,  the  three  men 
previously  mentioned  showed  signs  of  some  sort 
of  an  encounter  of  a  disagreeable  nature. 

Various  rumors  and  clews  were  followed  in  the 
next  few  weeks  to  discover  the  Goddess'  hiding 
place.  One  man  reported  that  he  had  seen  her 
being  carried  into  a  building  back  of  The  Draper; 
another  that  he  had  seen  her  in  Deerfield;  an- 
other still,  not  connected  in  any  way  with  the 
college,  offered  for  a  mere  $1000  to  give  "valu- 
able information."  (The  Odd  Classmen  never 
learned  the  value  of  this  information,  for  they 
did  riot  avail  themselves  of  the  privilege  of  buy- 
ing it.)  When  Commencement  time  came,  1919 
was  graduated  and  Sabrina  still  reigned  supreme 
in  the  hands  of  the  Even  Classes. 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET 

SABRINA  remained  in  her  hiding  place  in 
Belchertown  until  the  following  March.  All 
during  the  summer  of  1919  activity  was  at 
a  standstill,  and  the  Goddess  was  not  to  venture 
forth  again  until  her  eventful  journey  to  the  Bos- 
ton Banquet.  The  Executive  Committee  of  the 
Boston  Alumni  Association  in  drawing  up  its 
plans  for  the  annual  banquet,  hit  upon  the  idea  of 
having  Sabrina  appear  at  the  function.  It  was 
thought  at  this  time  that  to  show  Sabrina  to  the 
Alumni  body  would  not  only  stir  up  great  enthusi- 
asm for  the  college  among  its  graduates,  but  might 
also  stir  up  some  interest  on  the  part  of  the  outside 
world.  Freeman  Swett,  '17,  was  a  member  of 
this  committee  and  secretary  of  the  association. 
He  was  given  the  duty  of  making  the  negotia- 
tions with  the  undergraduates  concerning  the 
possibility  of  bringing  the  statue  down  to  Bos- 
ton. He  accordingly  got  into  communication 
with  Roland  A.  Wood,  '20,  whom  he  knew  very 
well.  He  wrote  Wood  that  the  Alumni  wanted 
very  much  to  borrow  Sabrina  for  the  occasion; 
that  absolute  secrecy  should  surround  the  entire 
affair,  that  no  chances  would  be  taken,  and  he 
gave  him  to  understand  that  although  he  was  an 
Odd  Classman,  the  purpose  of  showing  Sabrina 


100 


SABRINA 


was  to  stir  up  enthusiasm  for  the  college,  and  not 
an  attempt  on  the  part  of  Odd  Classmen  to  cap- 
ture the  Goddess.  Wood  replied,  and  advised 
Swett  to  get  in  touch  with  Phillip  See,  the  1918 
guardian.  Wood's  letter  is  re-produced  here  as 
an  interesting  memento  of  subsequent  events 
which  culminated  in  the  capture  of  Sabrina  for 
the  Odd  Classmen. 

Whether  Swett  wrote  to  See  about  this  matter 
is  not  known,  but  certain  it  is  that  Wood  took 
up  the  matter  with  Low,  the  guardian,  and  Paul 
Phillips,  president  of  the  class.  These  men  were 
so  surprised  at  the  project,  and  as  it  presented  a 
new  and  novel  problem  with  which  previous 
Sabrina  guardians  had  never  had  to  cope,  they 
decided  they  had  better  come  on  to  Boston  and 
talk  the  matter  over  with  the  former  guardian. 

About  two  weeks  before  the  date  on  which  the 
banquet  was  to  be  held,  an  undergraduate  came 
to  Boston  and  met  See.  See  was  absolute  in  his 
refusal  to  endorse  the  proposition.  He  thought 
the  proposed  appearance  to  be  exceedingly  risky, 
and  the  value  to  the  college  to  be  derived  from 
the  publicity  of  its  appearance  altogether  incom- 
mensurate with  the  danger  that  would  be  run. 
Somewhat  influenced  by  this  view,  the  under- 
graduate told  the  committee  with  whom  he  had 
conferred,  consisting  of  a  member  of  the  Execu- 
tive Committee  and  two  Even  Classmen  for- 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          101 

merly  prominent  in  Sabrina  activities,  that  lie  did 
not  believe  that  the  Goddess  could  J>ei  U^d^lbr 
such  a  purpose.  He  then  returned  to  Amherst. 
The  Even  Class  committee  at  college  endorsed 
this  refusal  but  finally  gave  in  to  the  repeated 
requests  of  the  alumni.  They  stated  that  the 
matter  should  be  viewed,  not  as  an  interclass 
affair,  but  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  alumni 
of  the  entire  college.  The  whole  idea  was  to  give 
Amherst  the  same  publicity  that  other  colleges 
had  been  getting  in  Boston  in  past  years.  They 
reassured  the  guardian  that  all  necessary  pre- 
cautions should  be  taken,  and  that  while  the  ex- 
ploit seemed  daring,  in  reality  the  risk  was  small. 
The  1920  men  thought  the  proposition  over 
again  and  finally  decided  that  they  would  sub- 
merge their  class  interests  for  the  larger  interest 
of  the  college  as  a  whole,  and  accordingly  gave 
their  consent  to  the  showing  of  Sabrina.  The 
committee  being  reassured  that  the  project 
would  go  through,  left  the  matter  of  getting 
Sabrina  to  the  banquet  and  of  having  her  re- 
moved safely,  to  1914  men.  McGay,  '14,  was 
given  charge  of  the  affair,  and  he,  accordingly, 
worked  out  his  plans.  He  made  a  thorough 
inspection  of  the  Copley  Plaza,  paying  particu- 
lar attention  to  the  interior  arrangements,  and 
adjoining  neighborhood.  There  was  a  covered 
driveway  running  the  entire  length  of  the  hotel, 


102  SABRINA 

Upon  which  a  door  opened  directly  into  the  large 
bali<r&6m  where  the  banquet  was  to  be  held.  It 
was  decided  to  bring  the  statue  into  the  driveway 
on  a  truck  a  few  minutes  before  the  time  sched- 
uled for  her  appearance,  and  then  to  carry  her 
into  the  banquet  hall,  show  her  for  a  brief  mo- 
ment, and  withdraw,  retreating  along  the  same 
line  that  they  had  entered. 

Details  were  well  worked  out  in  advance.  A 
"Zero  Hour"  was  determined  upon  at  which 
the  statue  was  to  appear,  and  all  men  connected 
with  the  showing  were  acquainted  with  this 
time.  The  seating  of  the  Alumni  at  tables  was 
so  arranged  that  the  Even  Classmen  should  be 
grouped  around  the  door  at  which  the  Goddess 
was  to  appear,  Odd  Class  tables  being  relegated 
to  far  corners.  Men  were  appointed  to  watch 
the  doors  and  main  exits  of  the  hotel  to  be  sure 
that  no  Odd  Classmen  left  the  building.  It  was 
planned  to  remove  the  lugs  in  the  revolving  doors 
so  that  they  would  be  put  out  of  commission, 
temporarily.  Men  were  also  to  be  stationed  at 
the  doors  of  the  banquet  hall  leading  to  the  main 
corridors  of  the  hotel,  to  prevent  anyone  leaving. 

For  the  purpose  of  moving  Sabrina,  a  large 
truck  belonging  to  R.  H.  Stearns  and  Company 
was  to  be  obtained.  It  was  planned  to  ship 
Sabrina  to  the  warehouse  of  the  Miller  Piano 
Company  where  she  was  to  arrive  during  the 


r<5t^. 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          103 

day,  and  be  kept  there  until  shortly  before  the 
"Zero  Hour,"  when  she  was  to  be  taken  to  the 
banquet,  and  after  she  had  been  shown,  was  to 
be  immediately  returned  to  the  Miller  Piano 
Company.  All  was  now  in  readiness,  but  subse- 
quent changes  in  plans  to  conform  to  the  different 
situation  that  the  Even  Classmen  found  on  the 
night  of  the  banquet  were  made. 

The  first  intimation  that  came  to  Odd  Class- 
men that  Sabrina  might  be  shown  at  the  banquet 
was  at  a  Chi  Phi  luncheon  in  Boston  when  Phil 
See  read  a  letter  to  the  men  there  assembled 
written  to  him  by  Wood.  This  letter,  which  had 
been  written  some  time  previously,  informed  See 
of  the  proposal  to  show  Sabrina  at  the  Boston 
Banquet,  and  asked  him  for  a  statement  of  his 
opinion  regarding  the  matter.  See,  having 
previously  refused  to  sanction  the  appearance, 
was  rather  amused  at  the  determination  of  the 
undergraduates  to  show  Sabrina,  and  treated  the 
matter  as  a  huge  joke.  It  was  utterly  beyond 
his  comprehension  that  the  intentions  of  the 
Even  Classmen  could  be  serious. 

Boynton,  '19,  was  at  the  luncheon  and  became 
tremendously  excited  at  the  letter  read  by  See. 
That  afternoon  he  telephoned  Seward  and  re- 
peated to  him  what  See  had  said  at  the  luncheon 
that  day.  Seward,  while  not  altogether  con- 
vinced that  Sabrina  was  to  be  shown,  because 


104  SABRINA 

of  the  openness  with  which  See  had  disclosed 
the  matter,  agreed  with  Boynton  to  get  in  touch 
with  McGregor  '19,  and  talk  the  matter  over. 
That  night,  Seward  saw  McGregor  and  they 
decided  that  the  likelihood  of  Sabrina's  really 
coming  was  slight,  but  that  at  the  same  time  it 
would  be  advisable  to  make  some  plans  to  wel- 
come the  Goddess  if  she  should  put  in  an  appear- 
ance. The  banquet  was  a  large  occasion,  and  it 
did  not  seem  wise  to  let  even  the  rumor  which 
had  come  to  their  attention  go  by  without  mak- 
ing some  preparations.  It  so  happened  that 
McGregor  was  acquainted  with  a  detective  who 
had  a  large  organization  in  Boston,  and  with 
whom  his  father  had  often  had  business  and 
personal  dealings.  Accordingly,  this  man,  whom 
we  shall  here  call  Mr.  Williams,  was  taken  into 
consultation.  At  the  first  meeting  with  Mr. 
Williams  the  matter  was  talked  over  in  a  rather 
vague  and  loose  way,  and  nothing  of  any  note 
was  done. 

Seward  shortly  afterwards  went  to  New  York 
to  see  Soliday.  In  going  over  the  possibility  of 
an  appearance  of  Sabrina  at  an  alumni  function 
attended  by  both  Odd  and  Even  Classmen,  they 
were  impressed  with  the  honor  that  would  come 
to  the  Even  Classes  in  the  event  of  success  to  them 
and  determined  to  lay  as  complete  plans  as  events 
warranted.  Later  on  Rowell  Schleicher,  '21, 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          105 

who  had  charge  of  non-Sabrina  activities  in  Col- 
lege, was  requested  to  come  to  Boston,  and 
another  meeting  was  held  with  Mr.  Williams. 

By  this  time,  the  probability  of  the  Sabrina 
proposition  going  through  was  somewhat  stronger, 
and  a  detailed  plan  was  developed  by  which 
to  capture  the  statue  if  it  appeared.  The  first 
thing  to  do  was  to  get  a  clear  understanding  and 
thorough  knowledge  of  the  ins  and  outs  of  the 
Hotel  Copley  Plaza.  Accordingly,  Seward  and 
McGregor  made  a  complete  inspection  of  the 
building  at  an  early  date.  The  most  prominent 
feature  of  the  layout  was  the  covered  driveway, 
previously  mentioned,  which  runs  through  the 
entire  building  from  Trinity  Place  to  Dartmouth 
Street.  It  became  clear  that  if  Sabrina  was  to 
be  shown  inside  the  Copley  that  this  driveway 
was  the  logical  place  of  entrance  and  retreat. 
Several  doors  were  observed  leading  into  the  ball 
room,  which  were  used  for  bringing  in  supplies, 
and  it  was  evident  that  these  doors  could  easily 
be  opened  for  Sabrina. 

It  was  determined  at  a  subsequent  meeting 
with  Schleicher  and  Mr.  Williams  that  the  best 
method  of  capture  was  to  attempt  to  take  the 
statue  after  it  had  made  its  appearance,  and  that 
it  would  be  unwise  to  try  to  seize  it,  before  it 
was  taken  into  the  driveway.  Accordingly,  they 
decided  to  hire  several  cars  for  pursuit  purposes, 


106  SABRINA 

and  with  which  to  block  the  car  carrying  Sabrina, 
if  possible.  The  matter  of  hiring  and  manning 
the  machines  was  left  to  Mr.  Williams.  After 
going  over  the  plans  again,  Schleicher  went  back 
to  Amherst  where  he  was  to  report  immediately 
any  occurrences  of  a  suspicious  nature. 

In  the  meantime,  the  Executive  Committee  in 
charge  of  the  banquet  had  printed  an  announce- 
ment of  the  affair.  This  embodied  a  program 
of  the  various  entertainment  features  that  were 
to  be  held.  A  large  question  mark  appeared  as 
the  last  announcement,  and  this,  together  with 
the  accompanying  wording,  could  mean  nothing 
to  Odd  Classmen  but  that  Sabrina  was  to  be 
shown.  The  Odd  Classmen  were  now  firmly 
convinced  that  the  appearance  was  to  be  at- 
tempted. Plans  were  again  gone  over  carefully 
and  complete  secrecy  surrounded  them.  No  one 
was  told  of  the  arrangements  which  had  been 
made,  nor  was  the  Executive  Committee  ques- 
tioned as  to  the  probability  of  Sabrina's  being 
shown.  These  in  brief  were  the  complete  plans 
of  the  Odd  Classmen,  and  as  subsequent  happen- 
ings prove,  they  were  well  drawn  up  and  care- 
fully prepared,  although  some  changes  were  found 
to  be  necessary  on  the  night  of  the  banquet. 

The  story  of  the  journey  of  Sabrina  to  Boston 
has  been  prepared  as  here  submitted  by  Paul 
Phillips,  President  of  the  class  of  1920. 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          107 

At  the  time  the  Even  Classmen  gave  their 
consent  to  bring  Sabrina  to  the  Boston  Banquet, 
it  was  just  about  physically  impossible  to  get  the 
statue  there  because  of  the  weather  conditions. 
One  of  the  members  of  the  Sabrina  Committee, 
Cowles,  got  the  statue  from  its  hiding  place  in 
Belchertown,  boxed  it  up  and  put  it  on  a  train 
at  Springfield  for  Boston.  This  in  itself  was 
considerable  of  a  task,  for  the  statue  was  buried 
beneath  two  feet  of  frozen  earth.  To  quote 
Phillips'  report:  "We  felt  no  compunction  in 
sending  her  via  express,  which  is  contrary  to  our 
rules,  because  we  were  not  serving  the  interests 
of  the  Even  Classes,  but  those  of  the  college.  We 
had  already  shown  the  Lady  as  the  rules  called 
for,  and  we  were  doing  this  at  the  request 
of  the  Alumni,  as  a  College  and  as  a  two  class 
affair — serving  alike  the  interests  of  both  Odd 
and  Even  Classes.  She  was  safely  received  at 
a  wayside  station  just  out  of  Boston  and 
was  received  by  the  '  chief/1  and  carried  away 
into  hiding  until  the  time  of  her  appearance. 
The  chief  sent  the  men  who  accompanied  the 
Lady  back  to  Amherst.  He  wanted  no  case  of 
divided  authority  in  Boston,  and  wanted  the 
alumni  to  take  all  the  responsibility.  Another 
reason  for  this  was  the  fact  that  the  sight  of 

1  Phillips  refers  to  McGay  who  was  in  charge  of  the  Boston  end 
of  the  appearance  as  "the  chief." 


108  SABRINA 

Even  Class  undergraduates  in  Boston  at  this  time 
would  excite  the  suspicion  of  Odd  Classmen,  who 
knew  nothing  of  the  plan." 

The  wayside  station  mentioned  above  was 
Framingham.  Later  investigation  has  revealed 
the  fact  that  Cowles,  '20  and  Scott,  '22,  accom- 
panied the  statue  to  Framingham  where  they 
were  sent  back  to  Amherst  as  Phillips  states. 
McGay  and  Miller,  '14,  took  Sabrina  in  a  truck 
to  Boston  and  placed  her  in  the  warehouse  of  the 
Miller  Piano  Company  as  had  been  previously 
planned.  McGay  describes  this  as  follows:  " Sa- 
brina was  brought  to  Framingham  by  express  after 
a  twelve  mile  drive  by  sled  on  the  other  end,  the 
morning  of  the  event.  Stan  Miller  and  I  met  the 
two  undergraduates  who  brought  her  down  and 
put  her  aboard  one  of  Miller's  trucks  and  took 
her  to  the  Henry  Miller  Piano  Company  on 
Boylston  Street.  She  stayed  there  until  a  few 
minutes  before  she  was  shown  at  the  banquet." 

McGay  supplies  the  information  that  it  was 
originally  intended  to  have  Sabrina  carried  into 
the  banquet  by  officers  of  the  Boston  Alumni 
Association,  of  which  officers  seven  were  Odd 
Classmen.  The  fact  that  this  plan  was  not  carried 
out,  offers  convincing  proof  that  the  Odd  Classmen 
who  captured  Sabrina  were  not  " tipped  off"  by 
any  of  the  Executive  Committee,  or  in  any  way 
aided  in  their  attempts. 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          109 

The  forty-ninth  Annual  Banquet  of  the  Boston 
Alumni  Association  of  Amherst  College  was  held 
on  Wednesday  Evening  March  3,  1920  at  the 
Hotel  Copley  Plaza.  It  was  a  great  affair.  The 
principle  speakers  were  prominent  alumni,  among 
whom  were  Governor  Coolidge,  since  elected 
Vice-President  of  the  United  States,  President 
Meiklejohn,  Professor  Barker,  and  Rush  Rhees, 
President  of  Rochester  University.  Judge  Ed- 
ward C.  Estey  presided.  Among  the  six  hundred 
or  more  alumni  present  were  men  of  practically 
every  class  since  the  year  '57,  of  which  class 
several  men  put  in  an  appearance.  It  is  inter- 
esting to  note  that  at  this  time  prolonged  ap- 
plause greeted  the  reference  to  Gov.  Coolidge's 
presidential  chances.  "Tug"  Wilson,  president 
of  the  Amherst  Alumni  Association  of  Chicago 
urged  the  Boston  Alumni  to  bring  the  governor 
to  the  convention  the  following  fall  and  make  him 
president,  and  at  this  suggestion  the  hotel  re- 
sounded with  Amherst  cheers. 

While  President  Meiklejohn  was  paying  trib- 
ute to  the  lasting  interest  of  college  traditions, 
the  folding  doors  at  the  side  of  the  hall  suddenly 
opened  and  a  huge  representation  of  a  bottle  of 
Gordon's  Gin  was  brought  into  the  room.  When 
it  had  progressed  well  into  the  center  of  the  group 
of  Even  Class  tables,  which  were  placed  in  a 
circle  around  the  door,  the  effigy  was  torn  aside 


110  SABRINA 

and  Sabrina  in  all  her  loveliness  was  revealed  to 
the  astonished  gaze  of  the  men  there  present. 
The  cheering  which  broke  loose,  and  the  conflict- 
ing cries  of  Odd  and  Even  Classes  rilled  the  hotel, 
while  frantic  scurrying  about  on  the  part  of 
Odd  Classmen,  and  the  self-congratulatory  back- 
slapping  of  Even  Classmen  heightened  the  ex- 
citement. The  statue  was  quickly  withdrawn 
and  President  Meiklejohn  was  allowed  to  con- 
tinue his  address,  which  we  fear  fell  upon  the 
ears  of  a  more  inattentive  audience  than  ever 
sat  in  Walker  Hall  for  a  Freshman  Math  class. 

Rumors  floated  about  freely  to  the  effect  that 
Sabrina  had  been  captured,  that  Sabrina  had 
escaped,  and  that  Sabrina  was  coming  back, 
when  Boynton,  '19,  during  a  pause  between  the 
speeches,  announced  in  loud  voice  that  Sabrina 
had  been  taken  and  was  in  the  hands  of  the  class  of 
1919.  This  was  the  signal  for  Odd  Classmen  to 
give  vent  to  all  the  pent-up  enthusiasm  which  had 
been  accumulating  over  a  long  period  of  twenty- 
nine  years.  If  the  Copley  had  resounded  with 
"All  hails"  when  the  Goddess  put  in  her  ap- 
pearance, it  now  fairly  vibrated  with  the  trium- 
phant paeans  of  Odd  Classmen. 

It  is  necessary  at  this  point  to  go  back  in  the 
story  to  the  point  at  which  Sabrina  was  left  in 
the  warehouse  of  the  Miller  Piano  Company. 
To  again  quote  McGay's  version  of  the  escapade : 


THE  COPLEY--PLAZA 

GROUND  FLOOR  PLAN 

COPLEY  SQUARE 


FLOOR  PLAN,  HOTEL  COPLEY-PLAZA 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          111 

— "It  was  planned  to  bring  Sabrina  into  the 
banquet  at  9:30  P.  M.  There  was  a  man  at 
each  door  of  the  hotel  to  pull  the  plungers  out  of 
the  revolving  doors  and  to  hold  them  for  three 
minutes  after  she  came  in.  A  fake  car  ran  into 
the  covered  alley-way  on  to  which  the  banquet 
hall  opened.  Of  course,  there  were  men  watch- 
ing outside  for  any  trouble,  and  the  driver  of 
the  R.  H.  Stearns  Company's  truck  was  to  be 
signalled  if  any  trouble  was  brewing.  Not  being 
able  to  find  any  Odd  Classmen  outside,  they  evi- 
dently thought  things  were  O.  K.  and  let  her 
come  in.  .  .  ." 

Sabrina  was  brought  to  the  Copley  from  the 
Miller  Piano  Company's  warehouse  in  the  truck 
which  had  been  secured  as  planned  from  R.  H. 
Stearns  and  Company,  a  few  moments  before  the 
scheduled  time  of  her  appearance.  To  again 
quote  McGay.  "I  had  charge  of  the  inside  and 
was  to  stop  it  (Sabrina)  from  coming  if  anything 
looked  bad.  All  went  well  inside  and  Sabrina  ap- 
peared on  time  covered  by  a  large  paper  bottle 
advertising  Gordon's  Gin.  She  was  uncovered 
and  a  ring  formed  around  her  and  she  was  kept 
there  for  a  minute  or  two,  then  taken  out  to  the 
truck,  and  the  door  was  locked.  .  .  ." 

Here  we  must  again  retrace  our  steps  in  order 
to  give  at  this  point  the  plans  and  actions  of  the 
Odd  Classmen  at  this  occasion.  When  Seward 


112  SABRINA 

and  McGregor  arrived  at  the  Copley  that  even- 
ing, they  took  a  final  look  around  to  see  if  their 
plans  were  so  laid  as  to  assure  success.  The 
first  thing  which  attracted  their  attention  on 
entering  the  banquet  hall  was  that  the  tables 
had  been  so  arranged  that  Odd  Class  interfer- 
ence in  the  event  of  the  statue  being  brought  into 
the  banquet  hall  through  the  doors,  in  the  way 
they  had  anticipated,  was  practically  impossible. 
The  Even  Class  tables  were  grouped  closely  in  the 
center  of  the  room  and  around  the  door  leading 
into  the  driveway,  and  Odd  Class  tables  were 
in  a  ring  further  away.  The  table  set  aside  for 
'19  was  in  the  corner  of  the  room  farthest  from 
the  suspected  door,  and  directly  beneath  the 
speaker's  table,  an  unusual  place  to  put  the 
youngest  graduating  class.  This  arrangement 
of  tables  practically  convinced  the  Odd  Classmen 
that  Sabrina  was  to  appear,  and  they  accordingly 
completed  their  plans  hastily.  Neiley,  '19, 
promptly  hired  another  automobile,  and  after 
Seward  and  McGregor  had  gone  out  and  talked 
with  the  men  whom  Mr.  Williams  had  sent  there 
in  cars,  as  had  been  previously  decided,  they 
returned  to  the  banquet  and  took  their  places  at 
the  tables.  But  before  entering  the  banquet 
hall,  they  looked  carefully  around  the  hotel  for 
means  of  exit  in  case  the  Goddess  was  brought 
in.  They  found  two  ready  means  of  leaving  in 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          113 

a  hurry  from  where  the  1919  table  was  placed. 
One  of  these  was  through  the  kitchen,  and  the 
other  a  stairway  that  led  to  the  second  floor  from 
where  easy  access  could  be  made  to  the  ground 
floor  through  the  musicians  gallery  and  upper 
corridor.  Thus,  reassured  of  a  line  of  retreat, 
they  decided  they  had  better  stay  inside  the 
banquet  hall  to  avert  suspicion,  and  sat  down 
outwardly  calm,  but  inwardly  agitated. 

Every  half  hour  one  of  the  Odd  Classmen  left 
the  building  and  looked  up  some  of  Mr.  Williams 
men  outside.  The  machines  were  stationed  on 
both  sides  of  the  building  on  which  the  driveway 
opened.  One  was  placed  in  front  of  the  hotel 
as  well.  These  machines  were  if  possible,  to 
block  the  truck  carrying  Sabrina  as  it  came  out 
of  the  driveway,  and  if  not,  to  follow. 

At  half  past  nine  a  taxicab  entered  the  drive- 
way and  remained  there  for  a  few  minutes  and 
then  disappeared.  Not  one  of  the  blocking  cars 
moved,  for  they  saw  through  the  Even  Class 
ruse.  The  Sabrina  guardians,  convinced  that 
all  was  well,  now  appeared  with  the  R.  H. 
Stearns  covered  truck  carrying  Sabrina.  This 
car  entered  the  driveway  and  almost  immediately 
profound  cheering  was  heard  from  the  inside  of 
the  building.  As  it  came  out  the  cars  provided 
by  Mr.  Williams  moved  towards  it. 

At  this  point  it  will  aid  the  reader  to  consult 


114  SABRINA 

the  accompanying  chart  of  the  plan  of  the  Cop- 
ley Plaza,  and  the  plan  of  the  streets  of  Boston 
in  that  neighborhood.  This  plan  has  been  drawn 
to  represent  graphically  the  line  of  flight,  pur- 
suit and  capture  of  Sabrina  as  it  took  place.  It 
should  be  borne  in  mind  at  the  same  time  that 
this  had  been  an  unusually  severe  Winter  and 
that  the  streets  were  piled  high  with  melting 
snow-drifts. 

As  the  truck  emerged  from  the  entrance,  the 
car  which  had  been  secured  by  Neiley  successfully 
blocked  it.  The  two  cars  collided,  but  serious 
injury  was  not  done  to  either.  The  truck  im- 
mediately backed  away  and  its  driver  quickly 
decided  to  steer  around  the  car  in  his  way.  Ac- 
cordingly, he  veered  to  the  left  towards  a  heavy 
drift  of  snow,  and  not  taking  regard  of  the  con- 
sequences of  his  act,  plowed  into  it  head  fore- 
most. This  was  a  rash  move  for  the  truck  soon 
became  stalled  in  the  heavy  drifts  which  came 
well  up  over  the  hubs  of  the  wheels.  It  was  stuck 
so  fast  that  it  was  not  removed  from  the  drift 
until  next  morning,  although  heroic  attempts 
were  made  at  the  time  to  break  it  loose. 

In  the  meantime,  as  soon  as  Sabrina  had  ap- 
peared inside  the  banquet  hall,  Seward  and  Mc- 
Gregor rushed  out  of  the  hotel  by  means  of  the 
second  story  exit  they  had  previously  discovered. 
Boynton,  by  a  trick  of  fate,  had  been  standing 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          115 

near  a  main  exit  of  the  ball  room  when  the  statue 
was  ushered  in,  and  was  the  first  to  appear  on 
the  scene  as  the  R.  H.  Stearns  truck  emerged 
from  the  driveway.  He  got  into  the  machine 
hired  by  Neiley  just  before  it  was  struck  by  the 
van.  Seward  and  McGregor  came  up  just  as  the 
truck  stalled  in  the  snow  and  Seward  in  a  moment 
of  excitement  grasped  the  statue  with  both  hands 
in  an  attempt  to  drag  it  from  the  truck,  not 
knowing  what  he  would  do  with  it  if  he  did  get 
it.  An  Even  Classman  pursuaded  him  to  desist, 
asking,  "Who  are  you?"  "I  am  an  Even  Class- 
man, 1918,"  he  replied.  He  then  went  over  and 
sat  in  a  Ford  which  had  also  been  hired  by  the 
Odd  Classmen,  and  McGregor  joined  Boynton  in 
the  car  which  had  blocked  Sabrina. 

The  Even  Classmen,  seeing  their  two  cars 
stuck,  became  rather  excited  and  rushed  madly 
to  and  fro  without  taking  any  steps  to  remove 
the  statue  from  the  spot.  A  suggestion  was 
made  to  the  men  in  charge  of  Sabrina  that  they 
put  the  statue  in  the  Ford  in  which  Seward  was 
sitting.  Some  men,  it  is  not  known  to  this  day 
whom,  took  Sabrina  from  the  truck  and  put  her 
in  the  Ford  in  compliance  with  this  suggestion. 
Fords  were  not  built  to  admit  of  the  easy  en- 
trance of  three  hundred  pound  ladies,  who  are 
rather  obstinate  in  the  matter  of  their  posture, 
and  as  a  result  Sabrina's  toe  was  broken  in  the 


116  SABRINA 

mad  haste  with  which  she  was  piled  into  the 
tonneau  of  the  Ford.  Kimball,  and  Moulton, 
'14,  got  into  the  rear  seat  with  the  statue. 
Seward  and  two  of  Mr.  Williams'  men  occupied 
the  front  seat.  As  the  car  moved  off  in  the  rear 
of  the  Westminster  Hotel,  McGay  hung  on  the 
running  board,  but  a  moment  later,  seeing  two 
Even  Classmen  in  the  car  with  the  Goddess, 
dropped  off,  saying,  "You  watch  Sabrina  and 
I'll  follow  in  the  next  car." 

The  car  moved  on  through  the  streets  around 
Trinity  Station  and  swung  into  Clarendon  Street, 
down  Clarendon  across  Boylston  to  Common- 
wealth, where  it  swung  to  the  left  toward  Massa- 
chusetts Avenue.  During  this  ride  the  Even 
Classmen  continually  directed  the  driver,  whom 
they  thought  was  working  in  their  interests,  to 
turn  to  the  left  so  that  they  might  get  back  to 
the  warehouse  of  the  Miller  Piano  Company 
where  Sabrina  was  supposed  to  be  taken.  But 
the  driver,  who  knew  what  he  was  about,  re- 
peatedly refused  to  comply  with  their  requests, 
saying  that  the  ruts  in  the  snow  were  so  deep 
that  he  could  not  swing  the  car  out  of  them. 
All  this  time  Odd  Class  cars  manned  by  Mr. 
Williams'  men,  and  several  Even  Class  cars 
followed  closely  in  the  rear. 

As  the  car  turned  to  the  right  into  Massachu- 
setts Avenue  one  of  the  Even  Classmen  whose 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          117 

suspicions  were  aroused  by  this  time,  leaned  over 
and  pushed  the  driver  forward,  at  the  same  time 
giving  the  wheel  a  jerk  to  the  left.  The  driver, 
falling  forward  on  the  foot  levers,  stalled  the 
Ford,  and  it  stood  motionless  in  the  center  of 
the  street.  A  dispute  arose  as  to  what  should 
be  done  next  as  the  other  cars  came  up.  The 
Odd  Classmen  made  all  the  confusion  and  noise 
that  was  possible,  so  as  not  to  give  the  Even 
Classmen  a  chance  to  get  off  by  themselves  and 
think  clearly.  They  were  helped  in  this  to  some 
extent  by  the  drivers  as  well. 

As  luck  would  have  it  Mr.  Williams  arrived  on 
the  scene  at  this  time.  He  came  up  to  the  car 
in  the  guise  of  a  special  police  officer  and  asked 
what  all  the  trouble  was  about.  He  was  im- 
mediately assured  that  there  was  no  trouble  at 
all.  Looking  in  the  back  of  the  car  he  saw  the 
battered  statue  of  Sabrina.  "  What's  that  thing 
in  there?"  he  asked.  "It's  a  statue/'  replied 
various  men.  "Who  does  it  belong  to?"  asked 
Williams.  "  It  belongs  to  us.  It  belongs  to  us," 
said  the  Odd  and  Even  Classmen  in  the  same 
voice.  "Well,  why  not  go  down  to  the  Police 
Station  and  straighten  the  matter  out?"  said 
Williams.  "That's  a  good  idea,"  said  the  Odd 
Classmen,  and  the  Even  Classmen  reluctantly 
acceded  to  this  proposal.  The  Even  Classmen 
at  once  attempted  to  hire  the  Ford  to  make  sure 


118  SABRINA 

there  would  be  no  question  of  authority  once 
they  were  under  way.  The  driver  readily  fell  in 
with  their  offer  and  named  twenty  five  dollars  as 
his  price.  "Well,  we'll  pay  that"  said  the  Even 
Classmen,  but  the  driver,  trying  to  make  time 
for  the  Odd  Classmen  put  up  an  argument 
about  his  hat,  which  had  been  lost.  "  I  don't  go 
until  I  get  paid  for  my  hat"  he  said,  "I've  lost 
my  hat."  "Well,  we'll  pay  you  for  your  hat," 
said  the  Even  Classmen.  "Well,  I  want  it  now," 
said  the  driver.  Thus,  he  added  to  the  general 
confusion.  Two  Even  Classmen  who  had  been 
in  the  rear  seat  with  Sabrina,  got  out  of  the  car 
and  only  Kimball  remained.  Mr.  Williams  saw 
to  it  that  they  remained  outside,  and  that  he  and 
his  men  took  their  places  in  the  back  of  the  car. 
Seward,  fearing  that  he  might  be  recognized, 
also  left  the  car  with  Sabrina  and  entered  the 
machine  in  which  McGregor  had  followed  closely 
behind,  Boynton  having  stayed  at  the  hotel. 

The  Ford  now  started  out,  supposedly  on  its 
way  to  the  Police  Station  to  settle  the  matter  of 
the  disputed  possession  of  the  Goddess,  who  had 
all  this  time  been  resting  serenely  in  the  rear 
of  the  car,  unperturbed  by  all  the  excitement 
which  her  presence  was  causing.  The  driver  of 
the  car,  having  received  his  instructions  in  some 
detail  previously,  now  swung  to  the  right  off 
Massachusetts  Avenue  and  ran  down  some  side 


STREETS   OF   BOSTON 
The  Line  of  Flight 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          119 

streets,  eventually  making  a  complete  circle  of 
the  block.  Two  cars  in  the  employ  of  the  Odd 
Classmen  were  waiting  at  the  corner,  and  as  the 
calvacade  approached,  the  car  bearing  Sabrina 
was  allowed  to  pass  and  go  out  on  Massachusetts 
Avenue  toward  Cambridge.  The  second  car 
containing  Even  Classmen  was  cleverly  blocked. 
Just  as  it  came  to  the  corner  the  Odd  Class  car 
shot  out  in  front  of  it,  driving  up  to  the  curbstone 
where  the  two  cars  collided  gently.  In  the  car 
following  were  Seward  and  McGregor,  and  this 
drove  around  the  two  cars  jammed  on  the  side- 
walk and  followed  Sabrina  out  over  the  Harvard 
Bridge  into  Cambridge.  Several  hundred  yards 
behind  came  a  lone  Ford  which  had  been  waiting 
on  Massachusetts  Avenue  for  the  return  of  the 
cavalcade  to  the  main  highway,  and  this  was 
closely  followed  by  two  Even  Class  machines. 
By  zigzagging  across  the  bridge,  making  "S's" 
and  by  other  feats  of  driving,  the  Ford  managed 
to  block  the  roadway  completely,  thus  prevent- 
ing the  machines  behind,  which  had  succeeded  in 
breaking  away,  from  following  Sabrina,  who  was 
by  this  time  out  of  sight  and  far  away.  The 
Ford  bearing  Sabrina  headed  at  a  good  rate  for 
Cambridge,  in  which,  as  has  been  related,  were 
Kimball,  '14,  and  four  of  Mr.  Williams  men. 
Arriving  in  Cambridge  the  car  turned  off  to  the 
right  beyond  Central  Square  and  dodged  in  and 


120  SABRINA 

out  among  the  dark  streets  of  that  neighborhood 
for  some  time.  When  convinced  that  pursuit 
had  been  effectually  cut  off,  they  came  to  a  stop. 
McGregor  and  Seward  came  up  in  their  car  and 
together  with  Mr.  Williams  they  approached 
Kimball.  Kimball  was  finally  convinced  of  the 
utter  uselessness  of  any  attempt  to  resist,  and 
accordingly  agreed  with  the  proposal  that  he 
return  to  Boston  with  McGregor  and  Seward. 
This  he  did,  and  Sabrina  was  at  once  taken  to  the 
residence  of  Mr.  Williams  as  had  been  previously 
planned. 

Returning  to  the  banquet  Seward  and  Mc- 
Gregor found  the  speeches  well  under  way,  and 
that  the  function  had  resumed  a  normal  aspect. 
Boynton  was  sought  out  and  told  to  make  his 
announcement  as  chronicled  above,  which  he  did. 

In  the  meantime  a  telegram  had  been  sent 
to  Schleicher  at  Amherst  announcing  the  capture, 
and  he  speedily  spread  the  news  about  the  campus 
that  Sabrina  was  for  the  first  time  in  twenty- 
nine  years  the  Goddess  of  the  Odd  Classes.  The 
following  extract  from  the  Amherst  Student  for 
March  4,  1920,  amply  describes  the  effect  which 
the  magic  news  had  upon  the  undergraduates. 

"At  exactly  10:45  last  night  Schleicher,  '21, 
in  Amherst,  received  the  following  telegram  from 
Seward  and  McGregor:— 

"Sabrina  appeared.     We  have  her." 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          121 

Swiftly  the  news  ran  about  the  college.  Groups 
of  Odd  Classmen  joined  in  singing  the  Sabrina 
song  in  celebration.  A  huge  bonfire  was  kindled 
in  front  of  the  Library,  and  the  Chapel  bell  was 
tolled  vigorously.  As  the  rumor  was  spread  it 
was  distorted,  and  many  and  wild  were  the 
versions  circulated  about  college  in  the  early 
hours  of  the  morning.  Chapel  was  turned  into 
a  Sabrina  celebration,  the  doxology  giving  way 
to  the  Sabrina  song,  and  the  usually  sedate  pre- 
lude swelling  in  a  Paean  of  Triumph.  After  the 
Sabrina  song,  the  Freshman  exhibited  a  lurid 
banner  on  which  was  printed  "  Sabrina  Day- 
No  Classes/'  After  that  the  Freshman  de- 
camped in  a  body  followed  by  most  of  the  Junior 
class." 

It  has  been  thought  advisable  to  re-print  here 
the  account  of  the  Boston  Banquet  which  is 
written  by  one  of  the  Even  Classmen  who  was 
closely  in  touch  with  all  happenings: — McGay. 

"The  statue  was  shown  for  a  minute  or  two 
and  then  backed  out  to  the  truck  and  the  door 
locked  from  behind.  We  got  out  of  the  alley- 
way and  turned  to  the  right  to  find  on  coming 
out  that  every  taxi  was  getting  ready  to  move  on. 
At  the  first  corner  a  big  machine  moved  out  and 
blocked  the  way.  Remember  the  snow  was  so 
deep  that  there  was  only  room  for  one  car  to  go 
down.  The  truck  hit  it  and  knocked  it  partly  to 


122  SABRINA 

one  side,  but  stalled  its  engine  in  so  doing.  I 
hopped  on  the  running  board  and  grabbed  the 
steering  wheel  of  the  car  ahead  so  it  could  not 
start  going  again,  and  the  truck  started  to  swing 
around  it.  It  went  up  to  the  hubs  with  about 
four  feet  more  to  go  and  could  not  be  moved. 
That's  how  near  we  came  to  getting  away  as 
Miller's  car  was  right  behind  the  truck,  and  if  they 
had  reached  solid  ground  this  car  could  have 
blocked  the  rest.  By  the  way,  the  only  man  out- 
side of  Even  Classmen  whom  I  saw  during  the 
entire  performance  who  might  have  been  an  Am- 
herst  man,  was  in  the  car  that  blocked  the  truck. 
He  was  a  little  dark-haired  fellow  in  evening  dress. 
When  I  got  aboard  he  tried  to  come  over  from  the 
back  seat  and  get  me  off,  and  I  firmly  but  gently 
put  him  back  where  he  started  from.  You  might 
ask  Seward  who  he  is  for  my  satisfaction.1  I 
started  back  to  get  some  more  of  the  gang. 
Meanwhile,  Sabrina  was  in  the  truck  in  perfect 
safety  with  about  twelve  Even  huskies  over  her. 
We  had  not  gone  fifty  feet  when  I  saw  her  being 
carried  across  the  street  to  an  open  Ford.  I 
hot-footed  it  back  but  she  was  inside  by  then  so 
I  jumped  on  the  running  board  with  Big  Dick 
Kimball  and  Moulton  inside  with  the  two  drivers. 
Bunny  Shaw  was  right  behind  in  a  taxi,  so  I 
dropped  off  and  got  inside  his  car  and  followed. 

1  This  was  Nehemiah  Boynton  Jr.  of  the  class  of  1919. 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          123 

We  went  about  ten  blocks  and  ended  up  on 
Massachusetts  Avenue  where  Kimball  made 
them  halt  as  they  had  picked  up  three  or  four 
other  cars  by  then.  The  four  of  us  tried  to  get 
Sabrina  into  our  taxi,  but  she  was  wedged  and 
we  could  not  get  her  out.  We  argued  and  talked 
and  moved  around  the  corner  trying  to  buy  our 
way  out.  It  was  finally  decided  that  we  would 
go  to  the  Police  Station,  and  we  started  off,  Big 
Dick  with  Sabrina  and  the  driver  in  the  car. 
Bunny  and  I  following,  went  around  the  block 
when  we  hit  Massachusetts  Avenue.  Two  cars 
cornered  ours  while  Sabrina  started  across 
Harvard  Bridge.  We  finally  got  by  but  she 
was  almost  across  and  we  lost  her  in  the  winding 
streets  about  half  way  to  Harvard  Square. 
Dick  cleaned  up  the  two  detectives  but  they  were 
met  by  some  other  cars  and  he  was  shipped  back 
to  Boston." 

This  account  of  McGay's  of  the  happenings 
around  the  Hotel  Copley  and  in  the  streets  of 
Boston  and  Cambridge,  coincides  in  all  details 
with  the  main  account  given  above  which  was 
compiled  from  data  and  memoranda  which 
certain  Odd  Classmen  had  preserved  as  souvenirs 
of  the  occasion,  as  well  as  from  the  memory  of 
the  principle  characters  involved  in  the  escapade. 

Thus,  Sabrina  changed  hands  for  the  first  time 
in  twenty-nine  years.  The  happenings  surround- 


124  SABRINA 

ing  the  capture  were  as  exciting  as  any  which 
had  previously  taken  place  in  any  adventure  in 
which  the  Goddess  has  been  the  center  of  attrac- 
tion. At  first  glance  it  would  seem  that  the  loss 
of  the  statue  by  the  Even  Classes  was  altogether 
uncalled  for,  and  yet  a  comprehensive  knowledge 
of  the  efforts  of  the  Odd  Classes,  which  extended 
back  to  the  entrance  of  the  class  of  1919  into 
Amherst  College,  and  even  before  that,  makes 
it  clear  that  while  the  men  who  actually  cap- 
tured Sabrina  did  get  certain  breaks  at  the 
time,  their  plans  were  well  laid,  their  determina- 
tion unflagging,  and  the  success  of  their  venture 
came  as  a  well  deserved  reward  for  the  efforts  of 
all  Odd  Classmen. 

Those  who  subsequently  came  in  contact  with 
the  Even  Classmen  who  were  directly  in  charge 
of  the  statue  had  the  feeling  that  they  regarded 
the  Sabrina  tradition  as  too  much  of  a  one-sided 
affair.  While  it  was  always  tacitly  assumed  that 
Sabrina  should  be  regarded  as  the  possession  of 
the  Odds  if  they  were  fortunate  enough  to  cap- 
ture her,  several  of  these  men  seemed  to  have 
the  view  that  Odd  Class  opposition  was  really 
nothing  but  a  small  side  of  the  tradition;  one  to 
add  zest  to  the  affair;  and  that  the  idea  of  Odd 
Classmen  really  possessing  the  statue  was  not 
included  in  the  rules.  It  can  only  be  here  said 
that  the  strong  feeling  of  the  Evens  at  the  loss  of 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          125 

their  Goddess  is  the  best  "assurance  that  the 
tradition  will  be  kept  up  in  the  future. 

Viewing  the  matter  historically  and  tracing 
the  events  which  led  up  over  a  long  period  to  the 
capture  of  the  Goddess,  several  factors  seem  to 
be  responsible.  Up  to  and  after  the  class  of 
1916  had  left  Amherst,  the  rules  governing  the 
guardianship  of  Sabrina  were  regarded  as 
sacred;  any  deviation  from  the  letter  of  the  law, 
and  putting  any  other  interpretation  upon  these 
rules  than  that  handed  down  by  precedent  was 
altogether  out  of  the  question.  Winthrop  Smith, 
'16  guardian,  discloses  the  fact  that  in  those 
days  Sabrina  could  not  be  moved  or  shown 
without  the  consent  of  the  two  previous  guar- 
dians. This  rule,  as  has  been  shown,  was  sub- 
sequently violated,  not  in  bad  faith,  but  be- 
cause strict  adherence  to  these  laws  and  conform- 
ance  to  the  spirit  of  the  tradition  gradually  broke 
down.  Many  causes  seem  to  be  responsible  for 
this  breakdown,  and  one  of  them  certainly  is 
the  dissipating  effect  that  the  participation  of 
the  college  body  in  war  activities  had  upon  the 
Sabrina  tradition.  Not  only  were  the  guardians 
scattered  far  apart,  making  communication  an 
impossibility,  but  the  idea  back  of  the  tradition 
was  weakened.  The  'IS  temporary  guardian, 
Hal  Johnson,  took  a  more  idealistic  view  of  the 
real  purpose  of  Sabrina  than  had  any  of  the 


126  SABRINA 

former  guardians.  He  discarded  some  of  the 
provisions  which  had  marked  the  tradition  in 
the  past,  and  broadly  chose  to  view  the  matter 
as  a  means  of  benefiting  the  entire  college  body 
rather  than  the  preservation  of  the  loyalty  of  the 
Even  Classmen  to  an  imaginary  Goddess.  Due 
largely  to  this  fact,  Odd  Classmen,  when  they 
went  into  conference  with  Johnson  and  the  other 
temporary  guardians,  were  bound  to  meet  with 
more  consideration  than  would  have  been  the 
case  in  former  years. 

Undoubtedly,  the  rules  did  more  to  crystallize 
the  Sabrina  tradition  as  an  affair  of  the  whole 
college  rather  than  of  the  Even  Classes,  than  any 
other  event.  The  result  was  the  determination 
on  the  part  of  the  class  of  1920  to  show  Sabrina 
more  in  the  course  of  one  year  than  she  had  ever 
been  shown  before,  even  though  the  under- 
taking involved  considerable  risk.  Be  it  said 
to  the  everlasting  credit  of  this  class,  they  did 
give  the  college  more  thrills  in  the  matter  of 
Sabrina  appearances  than  had  ever  been  experi- 
enced before. 

This  feeling,  that  Sabrina  was  a  college  affair, 
culminated  in  the  decision  to  lend  the  statue  to 
the  Boston  Alumni.  The  Even  Class  guardians 
expressly  say  that  their  consent  in  this  matter 
was  caused  by  their  desire  to  aid  the  college  in 
the  matter  of  publicity.  The  violation  of  the 


THE  BOSTON  BANQUET          127 

rules  which  the  giving  of  this  consent  constituted 
was  again  not  bad  faith,  nor  carelessness,  but 
lack  of  knowledge  that  such  rules  existed.  This 
point  more  than  anything  else  bears  out  the 
assertion  that  Sabrina  had  ceased  to  be  a  closed 
proposition  governed  by  hierarchy  of  former 
guardians,  and  more  of  a  distinctly  under- 
graduate affair. 


NINETEEN  NINETEEN 

EVENTS  subsequent  to  the  Boston  Ban- 
quet are  here  summarized  by  the  men 
who  played  the  principle  parts  in  them. 
Directly  after  Sabrina  had  been  captured  Schlei- 
cher  came  to   Boston.    Soliday  also  came  up 
from  Philadelphia  and  the  guardianship  of  Sa- 
brina was  officially  given  to  him. 

The  statue  was  left  at  the  home  of  Mr.  Williams 
for  three  days  while  a  box  was  being  made  for  it. 
After  this,  Sabrina  went  to  Fitchburg.  She  was 
shipped  there  on  a  train  in  care  of  a  Mr.  Wallace, 
a  manufacturer  of  that  city,  where  it  remained 
one  day  to  make  sure  that  it  was  not  being  fol- 
lowed. The  new  guardian  felt  quite  justified  in 
moving  the  statue  by  train  even  though  in  seem- 
ing violation  of  the  rules  adopted  while  they  were 
in  college,  because  of  the  weather  conditions, 
and  because  the  class  of  1920  had  committed  the 
same  violation  three  days  previous,  in  shipping 
the  statue  to  Boston  over  the  Boston  and  Albany. 
On  the  following  day  the  statue  was  taken  by 
machine  to  Winchendon,  Massachusetts,  and 
secreted  in  the  warehouse  of  H.  B.  Converse,  a 
toy  manufacturer  of  that  town.  Here  it  was 
kept  until  April  19.  The  Odd  Classmen  in 
charge  of  Sabrina,  because  they  were  graduated 

128 


NINETEEN   NINETEEN  129 

from  the  college,  and  because  they  felt  that  the 
Goddess  should  be  turned  over  to  the  class  of 
1921  as  soon  as  possible,  decided  to  have  the 
Goddess  put  in  an  appearance  at  Amherst  in 
the  hands  of  the  undergraduates.  Accordingly, 
Monday  April  19,  1920  was  determined  upon  in 
joint  conference  with  the  undergraduates  as  a 
date  upon  which  to  show  the  statue.  Plans  were 
accordingly  laid;  all  details  and  arrangements  at 
the  Amherst  end  being  left  entirely  to  Schleicher, 
while  Odd  Class  graduates  concerned  themselves 
only  with  bringing  the  statue  to  Amherst.  It 
was  decided  to  show  Sabrina  at  Chapel  exercises. 
It  was  pretty  well  understood  in  the  college  that 
Sabrina  might  appear  at  any  time,  and  accord- 
ingly, the  element  of  surprise  had  to  be  relied 
upon  strongly  in  making  any  preparations. 
The  arrangements  at  Amherst  were  completed 
and  the  necessary  machines  to  act  as  pursuit 
cars  were  hired.  These  machines  were  obtained 
in  Boston  to  avert  any  suspicion  that  might 
arise  if  they  were  hired  around  Amherst. 

All  during  this  period  Seward  and  McGregor 
were  closely  shadowed  in  Boston  by  men  who, 
even  at  the  distance  at  which  they  followed,  were 
obviously  and  unmistakably  agents  of  the  Ryder 
Detective  Agency.  To  entirely  divert  suspicion 
that  any  undertaking  connected  with  Sabrina 
was  on  foot,  Seward  and  McGregor  went  to 


130  SABRINA 

Amherst  the  week  end  before  the  date  set  for  the 
appearance,  and  fortunately,  there  was  a  dance 
at  the  Psi  U.  House  which  they  attended. 
Soliday  did  not  come  to  Amherst  this  week  end, 
as  it  was  fairly  well  known  that  he  might  be 
guardian,  and  it  was  felt  that  his  presence  in 
Amherst  w^ould  point  rather  definitely  to  the 
attempted  appearance  of  the  Goddess.  To 
heighten  the  effect  Seward  and  McGregor  re- 
turned to  Boston  Sunday  night. 

Some  time  before,  in  looking  for  a  machine 
which  was  suitable  for  carrying  Sabrina,  McGregor 
happened  to  mention  to  some  friends  of  his,  who 
were  then  undergraduates  in  Harvard  College, 
that  an  appearance  of  the  statue  might  be  a 
possibility  in  the  near  future.  The  affair  at  the 
Copley  had  resulted  in  considerable  publicity 
for  Sabrina  and  Amherst  in  and  around  Bos- 
ton, and  these  two  men,  albeit  from  a  college 
with  somewhat  different  ideals  and  tendencies, 
readily  became  enthusiastic  about  the  proposed 
showing.  Maurice  Curran  Jr.,  Harvard,  '20, 
offered  his  Mercer  to  McGregor  for  the  occasion, 
and  his  courtesy  was  promptly  accepted.  John 
Ladensack  Jr.,  and  Lee  Evans  Jr.,  both  of  Har- 
vard, also  wished  to  go  along  as  a  body-guard. 
Consent  was  given  for  it  was  felt  that  the  pres- 
ence of  these  men  while  Sabrina  was  being  moved 
around  Boston  and  the  vicinity  would  avert  all 


NINETEEN  NINETEEN  131 

suspicion  as  to  what  was  going  on.  So  these  men 
met  Seward  and  McGregor  at  the  latters  house 
at  eight  o'clock  on  Sunday  evening  and  they  all 
set  out  for  Winchendon  in  Curran's  Mercer  and 
McGregor's  Stearns.  The  latter  started  off  in 
a  rather  inauspicious  fashion,  as  he  was  arrested 
in  Harvard  Square  for  violating  a  traffic  ordi- 
nance. The  arm  of  the  law  was  dodged  here, 
however,  or  Sabrina  might  not  have  appeared 
the  following  morning. 

The  plan  was  for  the  men  to  proceed  to  Win- 
chendon, get  the  statue  and  go  at  once  to 
Amherst,  where  they  were  to  meet  Schleicher 
before  Chapel  in  front  of  the  post-office,  to  make 
sure  that  everything  was  in  readiness.  Schlei- 
cher was  to  have  two  men  beside  himself  on  hand 
to  greet  Sabrina,  and  one  man  stationed  out- 
side Chapel  to  wait  for  Sabrina  to  come  up 
College  Street,  when  he  was  to  rush  into  the 
building  and  announce  that  Sabrina  was  outside 
on  the  Holyoke  Road.  It  was  figured  out 
that  this  would  take  just  long  enough  for  the 
car  to  arrive  on  the  Holyoke  Road  at  the  foot 
of  Chapel  Hill.  While  the  college  body  came 
out,  Sabrina  was  to  be  lifted  to  view  and  then 
taken  down  the  Holyoke  Road  over  the  Notch, 
shifted  to  another  car  to  throw  off  possible 
pursuit,  and  taken  back  to  Winchendon,  while 
Schleicher  returned  to  Amherst. 


132  SABRINA 

The  men  in  the  two  cars,  after  their  misadven- 
ture in  Harvard  Square,  moved  down  along  the 
Fitchburg  Road.  Disaster  was  nearly  to  over- 
take them  more  than  once  before  the  close  of 
that  evening,  however. 

A  short  distance  outside  of  Concord,  McGregor 
was  driving,  when  suddenly  his  lights  went  out. 
He  was  travelling  at  a  high  rate  of  speed  and  as 
his  car  started  for  the  ditch  McGregor  tried  to 
stop  the  car  in  the  darkness,  but  it  caromed  off 
to  the  side  of  the  road  and  ran  into  a  fence  which 
borders  the  highway  at  this  point.  Hastily 
getting  out  of  the  car,  the  men  looked  it  over  to 
find  the  extent  of  the  damage  done.  Fortunately, 
only  one  mud -guard  was  missing,  and  the  running 
gear  appeared  to  be  in  working  condition.  It 
took  some  time  to  drag  the  car  back  on  to  the 
road,  and  an  even  longer  time  to  find  out  what 
was  the  trouble  with  the  lights.  As  it  was,  the 
lights  worked  fitfully  from  that  time  on,  and  the 
men  had  to  drive  in  the  dark  most  of  the  night. 
Curran  and  Seward  had  been  in  front  of  McGregor 
when  he  met  with  his  accident,  and  failed  to 
take  any  note  of  it  for  some  time.  After  they 
had  proceeded  some  ten  miles  up  the  road  they 
missed  their  pursuit  car,  and  began  to  wonder 
what  had  happened.  Doubling  back,  their 
worry  increasing  as  they  retraced  their  route, 
they  came  to  the  spot  where  McGregor's  car 


NINETEEN  NINETEEN  133 

lay  in  the  ditch  and  helped  place  it  back  on  the 
road. 

The  party  now  started  on  again  but  with  their 
nerves  considerably  on  edge.  Taking  any  ride 
which  has  Sabrina  as  its  destination  is  far  from 
having  a  calming  influence  upon  one,  and  the 
accident  which  had  happened  thus  without  warn- 
ing, did  a  great  deal  to  undermine  the  confidence 
of  the  men  and  prepare  them  for  most  anything. 

The  cars  were  now  running  completely  off 
schedule,  but  speeded  up  to  the  best  of  their 
ability  towards  Winchendon,  where  they  arrived 
at  one  o'clock,  two  hours  late.  They  proceeded 
directly  to  the  factory  of  H.  B.  Converse,  and 
met  the  owner,  who  admitted  them  to  the  ware- 
house where  Sabrina  was  in  hiding.  The  statue 
was  quickly  unpacked  and  placed  in  McGregor's 
car,  and  they  started  out  on  the  last  lap  of  their 
journey  towards  Amherst  just  as  dawn  was 
breaking.  They  picked  up  two  cars  which  were 
hired  for  the  occasion  in  Athol. 

All  speed  was  made  towards  Greenfield. 
Arriving  here,  a  stop  was  made  a  short  distance 
out  of  town  and  Sabrina  was  transferred  to  the 
Mercer.  The  expedition  now  proceeded  forward 
at  a  great  pace  in  an  effort  to  make  up  lost  time, 
and  arriving  at  the  Massachusetts  Agricultural 
College  at  eight  o'clock,  the  cavalcade  split. 
The  Mercer  and  McGregor's  car  proceeded  to 


134  SABRINA 

the  foot  of  College  Street  by  the  back  streets  of 
town,  past  Pratt  Infirmary  and  the  Deke  House, 
and  one  car  went  over  the  Notch  to  await  the 
arrival  of  Sabrina  after  she  was  shown.  Another 
car  was  sent  to  meet  Schleicher  in  front  of  the 
post-office.  It  was  indeed  a  wonder  that  the 
arrival  of  Sabrina  in  town  was  not  noticed,  for 
the  cars  kicked  up  clouds  of  dust  as  they  sped 
through  town. 

Schleicher  reported  that  everything  was  quiet, 
and  then  he  went  to  the  underpass  of  the 
Central  Vermont  Railroad  on  College  Street, 
where  he  met  Palmer,  and  Zink,  '21.  Sabrina 
was  waiting  in  the  Mercer  with  Curran  at  the 
wheel  and  Seward  on  the  front  seat  with  him. 
Palmer,  Zink  and  Schleicher  got  into  the  Mercer 
and  at  8:21  the  car  started  for  Chapel,  closely 
followed  by  McGregor  in  his  Stearns,  in  which 
were  Evans  and  Ladensack.  As  they  moved 
slowly  up  College  Street  the  top  of  the  Mercer 
was  thrown  back.  As  the  car  passed  the  Chi 
Phi  House,  Hatheway,  '21,  who  was  stationed  in 
front  of  Chapel,  recognized  it  by  the  red  ribbons 
which  were  flying  from  the  radiator  cap  and 
promptly  rushed  into  Chapel  and  made  his 
stirring  announcement. 

The  Mercer  now  jumped  forward,  turned  to 
the  left,  drove  on  past  the  Octagon  and  out  on 
the  Holyoke  Road.  Arriving  at  the  foot  of 


DAVID   S.  SOLIDAY 
1919  Guardian 


NINETEEN  NINETEEN  135 

College  Hill  it  came  to  a  stop,  and  Sabrina,  as 
she  was  lifted  up  by  Palmer,  Zink  and  Schleicher, 
once  again  viewed  her  old  surroundings  and 
the  terrace  at  the  foot  of  Chapel  Walk  where 
she  had  rested  many  years  ago  before  she 
became  the  much  disputed  object  of  interclass 
warfare. 

By  this  time  the  college  had  emerged  from 
Chapel  in  a  body  and  a  mad  rush  down  the  hill 
began.  The  cars  remained  motionless  until 
some  of  the  foremost  were  very  near,  then  they 
moved  slowly  away  from  the  disappointed  Even 
Classmen,  picking  up  speed  as  they  bowled 
down  the  Holyoke  Road.  At  the  bridge  over 
the  Boston  &  Main  tracks  they  picked  up  one  of 
the  waiting  cars,  which,  after  meeting  Schleicher, 
had  gone  to  this  point,  and  with  the  Mercer  in  the 
lead  sped  away.  At  the  bridge  across  Fresh- 
man River,  McGregor  stopped  and  drew  his  car 
up  directly  across  the  road,  completely  blocking 
it.  Fortunately,  for  McGregor's  car,  for  he  was 
stationed  at  a  curve  in  the  road,  no  cars  followed. 
The  element  of  surprise  was  relied  on  to  such  an 
extent  in  planning  this  appearance  that  it  was 
thought  unnecessary  and  inexpedient  to  take  the 
trouble  to  put  Even  Class  cars,  which  were  some- 
what numerous,  out  of  commission  beforehand, 
and  the  fact  that  no  car  manned  by  Even  Class- 
men came  hurtling  around  the  curve  where 


136  SABRINA 

McGregor  was  waiting,  goes  to  show  how  com- 
pletely the  Even  Classmen  were  taken  off  their 
guard. 

The  Mercer  bowled  over  the  Notch,  descend- 
ing on  the  other  side.  When  near  the  foot  of  the 
hill  it  stopped  and  Sabrina  was  transferred  to  a 
Packard  which  had  been  kept  in  waiting  here 
for  this  purpose.  Seward  got  into  this  car  which 
drove  promptly  to  Winchendon,  accompanied 
by  the  other  hired  car  which  followed  along  from 
Amherst.  Curran,  with  Palmer,  Zink  and  Schlei- 
cher  went  on  to  Springfield  to  throw  off  pur- 
suit, after  which  they  returned  to  Amherst. 
McGregor  returned  to  Boston  with  the  Harvard 
men  after  spending  most  of  the  day  in  Amherst. 

Sabrina  proceeded  on  to  Holyoke  in  the  Pack- 
ard, and  doubled  back  to  Hamp  and  on  towards 
Greenfield.  Just  outside  of  Northampton  the 
men  in  the  Packard  met  Governor  Coolidge,  but 
did  not  stop  for  obvious  reasons.  They  then 
went  on  to  Greenfield  believing  that  all  pursuit 
would  be  directed  towards  Springfield.  Subse- 
quent disclosures  prove  that  this  surmise  was 
correct.  From  Greenfield  they  proceeded  in  a 
leisurely  fashion  to  Winchendon  where  Sabrina 
was  again  hidden  away  in  the  warehouse  adjoin- 
ing the  toy  factory,  and  after  she  was  safely  put 
back  in  her  box  Seward  drove  back  to  Boston. 
So  ended  the  first  appearance  in  Amherst  of 


NINETEEN  NINETEEN  137 

Sabrina  in  the  hands  of  Odd  Classmen  for  twenty- 
nine  years. 

During  the  months  that  followed,  several  mem- 
bers of  the  class  of  1920,  sorely  disappointed  at 
the  loss  of  their  Goddess,  made  a  number  of 
trips  to  Boston  in  attempts  to  obtain  informa- 
tion as  to  the  whereabouts  of  their  former  God- 
dess. Here  they  secured  the  services  of  a  Detec- 
tive Agency,  and  if  rumors  can  be  believed,  they 
sent  these  men  in  all  directions.  What  informa- 
tion they  obtained,  or  of  what  value,  is  not 
definitely  known,  but  if  its  value  is  to  be  judged 
by  the  amount  of  the  charges  which  the  Detective 
Agency  saw  fit  to  levy  upon  certain  members  of 
the  class  of  1920,  it  must  have  been  of  prime 
importance  in  some  respects,  chiefly,  it  is  felt,  as 
an  object  lesson  in  the  future.  It  is  here  re- 
ported that  this  matter  was  finally  adjusted  to 
the  satisfaction  of  all  by  action  of  a  Court  of 
Equity  which  candidly  declared  that  the  service 
rendered  did  not  constitute  adequate  considera- 
tion for  the  amount  of  the  fee  charged. 

At  this  time  Gibson,  '19,  was  living  with 
Seward,  and  on  one  of  his  week  end  sojourns  in 
Amherst  an  incident  occurred  which  aroused  his 
suspicions.  Sabrina  was  at  this  time  hidden,  as 
has  been  mentioned,  in  the  factory  of  Mr.  Con- 
verse, who  also  owned  a  small  inn  in  the  town 
called  "Toy  Town  Tavern.7'  Gibson  found  a 


138  SABRINA 

souvenir  of  this  tavern  lying  upon  the  desk  in 
one  of  the  rooms  of  the  Alpha  Belt  House  which 
was  occupied  by  men  of  the  class  of  1920. 
Cautiously  inquiring  about,  his  suspicions  were 
more  fully  aroused,  and  accordingly  he  com- 
municated his  information  to  Seward  on  his 
return  to  Boston.  It  was  decided  that  no  chance 
would  be  taken  and  that  a  possibility  existed 
that  the  hiding  place  might  be  known,  and  ac- 
cordingly, plans  were  laid  to  remove  the  statue. 
In  consultation  with  Soliday  it  was  decided  to 
take  the  statue  as  far  away  from  its  present 
location  as  was  conveniently  possible,  and  it 
was  arranged  with  John  Atwater,  '15,  to  trans- 
port the  Goddess  to  Huntington,  West  Virginia, 
where  a  good  hiding  place  could  be  obtained  at 
the  bottom  of  a  deserted  mine  shaft. 

All  the  necessary  arrangements  were  made 
speedily.  Atwater  and  Soliday  were  to  take 
care  of  the  New  York  end  and  a  report  was  soon 
received  from  them  that  all  was  in  readiness.  It 
was  planned  to  bring  Sabrina  from  Winchendon 
to  New  Haven  where  Atwater  would  be  met, 
the  statue  transferred  to  his  car,  and  from  where 
he  would  take  it  to  Huntington,  W.  Va.  the  same 
day.  On  Saturday  evening,  June  4,  Seward, 
McGregor  and  Gibson  left  Brookline  in  McGre- 
gor's car  and  proceeded  without  delay  to  Win- 
chendon. Here  they  at  once  repaired  to  Mr. 


NINETEEN  NINETEEN  139 

Converse's  warehouse,  and  after  being  admitted 
proceeded  to  remove  the  statue.  This  warehouse 
was  used  as  a  storage  place  for  toys,  and  was 
completely  filled  from  top  to  bottom  with  car- 
tons and  cases  of  all  sorts  of  wooden  mechanical 
playthings.  Mounting  to  the  second  floor  of 
the  old  building  the  men  went  to  a  far  corner, 
and  after  removing  countless  crates  and  boxes 
found  the  case  containing  the  Goddess.  The 
boards  were  unscrewed  and  the  statue  lifted  out. 

Mrs.  Converse  had  taken  such  a  keen  interest 
in  the  Sabrina  story  that  she  came  down  to  her 
husband's  factory  late  at  night  to  see  Sabrina  off. 
The  statue  was  carried  down  the  narrow  stairs  by 
the  light  of  an  electric  torch,  and  placed  in  Mc- 
Gregor's car.  Then  the  men  quietly  moved  off 
into  one  of  the  rainiest,  blackest  nights  that  the 
country  had  seen  for  some  time.  Some  delay 
had  been  experienced  in  finding  Sabrina  and  re- 
moving her  from  her  crate,  and  as  a  result  the 
car  was  two  hours  or  more  behind  scheduled  time 
when  it  left  Winchendon.  The  condition  of  the 
roads  caused  further  delay  as  the  men  proceeded, 
for  driving  was  precarious,  and  the  unusual 
weight  in  the  rear  seat  of  the  car  caused  it  to 
skid  frequently. 

McGregor  had  driven  the  car  all  the  way  from 
Boston  to  Athol,  and  becoming  somewhat  weary, 
Seward  took  the  wheel.  This  nearly  resulted  in 
10 


140  SABRINA 

a  complete  disaster  to  the  entire  party,  for  driv- 
ing along  the  road  between  Greenfield  and  Am- 
herst  at  a  high  rate  of  speed  Seward  failed  to  see 
a  curve  a  short  distance  ahead  which  wound  up 
over  a  narrow  bridge.     The  car  just  hung  on 
the  road  due  to  Seward's  sudden  return  to  life, 
and  the  party  proceeded  over  the  bridge  and 
onward,  somewhat  breathless  and  rather  thank- 
ful for  the  unseen  and  protecting  hand  of  a 
higher  Power.     And  now,  Sabrina  went  through 
Amherst  for  the  second  time  that  year,  although 
this  trip  could  not  be  considered  in  any  way  an 
appearance.     In  fact,  considerable  care  was  taken 
that  it  should  not  be  mistaken  for  an  appearance 
by  any  Even  Classmen  who  might  be  prowling 
about  the  streets  of  Amherst  for  any  reason  that 
evening.     The  car  reached  the  confines  of  Am- 
herst about  one  in  the  morning,  and  passed  slowly 
down  South  Pleasant  Street,  past  the  Common, 
,and  continued  on  down  the  Holyoke  Road.     The 
line  of  travel  was  through  Holyoke  and  Spring- 
field, on  to  Hartford  and  then  to  New  Haven. 
The  roads  by  this  time  had  become  so  slippery 
that  it  was  impossible  to  keep  up  the  rate  of  speed 
which  had  been  previously  planned,  and  upon 
which  the  hour  scheduled  as  the  time  to  meet 
At  water  in  New  Haven  was  based.     After  pass- 
ing through  Hartford  the  men  took  the  wrong 
road  by  mistake  and  none  of  them  are  clear  to 


NINETEEN  NINETEEN  141 

this  day  exactly  what  highways  they  travelled 
over  in  going  to  New  Haven.  Some  of  these 
turnpikes  were  under  construction,  and  the  de- 
tours which  were  thereby  necessitated  led  through 
a  devious  and  winding  country. 

It  had  been  decided  to  meet  Atwater  in  New 
Haven  at  three  o'clock  that  morning  at  the  Taft 
Hotel.  A  telephone  call  had  been  attempted 
from  Hartford,  but  Atwater  was  not  there.  The 
car  bearing  Sabrina  reached  the  outskirts  of 
New  Haven  at  six  o'clock,  and  proceeded  at  once 
to  the  Taft  where  Atwater  was  found.  Robert 
Davis,  '19,  and  Theodore  Cross,  '15,  had  ac- 
companied him  from  New  York.  After  a  short 
consultation  the  two  cars  moved  out  of  town  on 
the  road  towards  New  York  and  picking  a  con- 
venient side  road  turned  off  the  main  highway 
and  came  to  a  stop  very  near  the  driveway  of  a 
large  estate.  It  had  been  planned  before  to 
effect  the  transfer  from  one  car  to  the  other 
under  cover  of  darkness,  but  there  was  nothing 
to  do  now  but  to  go  ahead  and  make  the  best 
of  it.  Accordingly,  in  broad  daylight,  Sabrina 
was  taken  out  of  McGregor's  car  and  placed  in 
Atwater's  Mercer  where  she  was  covered  with  a 
slip  cover.  Without  losing  any  more  time  the 
Mercer  started  out  on  the  way  to  New  York, 
the  other  car  following  it  for  a  short  distance  until 
the  speed  which  the  Mercer  attained  made  fur- 


142  SABRINA 

ther  pursuit  an  impossibility.  McGregor,  Se- 
ward  and  Gibson  now  returned  to  Boston  along 
the  Shore  Road,  where  they  arrived  after  a  long 
and  tedious  journey.  They  had  completed  all 
told,  a  journey  of  nearly  four  hundred  miles 
during  a  period  of  less  than  twenty-four  hours. 

Atwater  went  direct  to  New  York  and  took 
Sabrina,  avoiding  crowded  streets,  on  to  Phila- 
delphia. Pausing  for  refreshments  here  at  the 
home  of  David  Soliday,  they  went  on  to  Hunt- 
ington,  West  Virginia,  picking  up  Atwater's 
younger  brother  on  the  way,  Davis  and  Cross 
dropping  off  and  returning  to  New  York.  At- 
water arrived  in  Huntington  late  the  following 
evening  where  he  at  once  took  Sabrina  to  her  new 
hiding  place  at  the  bottom  of  a  deserted  mine 
shaft. 

While  the  authors  of  this  book  do  not  pretend 
to  know  the  complete  history  of  Sabrina  while 
in  the  hands  of  Even  Classes,  it  is  felt  that  the 
resting  place  in  West  Virginia  was  the  farthest 
spot  from  Amherst  in  which  Sabrina  has  ever 
stayed,  being  roughly  some  twelve  hundred  miles 
from  the  home  of  the  Little  Yankee  College. 
Here,  Sabrina  remained  until  her  appearance  at 
the  1921  banquet. 


NINETEEN  TWENTY  ONE 

AFTER  Sabrina  was  shown  on  April  19  of 
the  Spring  of  1920  she  remained  for 
some  time  in  West  Virginia  as  has  been 
described  previously.  Those  in  charge  of  the  statue 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  it  would  be  advis- 
able to  move  her  back  East  to  have  her  nearer 
the  college,  and  hold  her  against  the  time  for 
the  banquet  of  the  class  of  1921.  Accordingly, 
late  in  October,  Soliday,  who  was  still  official 
guardian,  communicated  with  the  men  in  Boston, 
and  after  considering  the  matter  at  some  length, 
they  decided  that  the  best  thing  to  do  was  to 
notify  Atwater  to  ship  the  statue  North  as  soon 
as  possible. 

Atwater  was  at  this  time  living  in  New  York 
and  he  and  Soliday  made  plans  to  bring  the 
statue  up  from  the  South.  It  was  decided  that  at 
this  time  of  the  year  it  would  be  impracticable  to 
bring  her  up  in  a  motor  and  that  she  would  have 
to  be  shipped  to  New  York  by  train.  Atwater 
attended  to  the  details  of  removing  the  statue 
from  its  hiding  place  and  of  having  a  suitable  box 
made  in  which  to  ship  her.  Sabrina  was  shipped 
to  New  York  by  express,  in  care  of  Robert  Davis, 
'19  Hills  Brothers  Company,  375  Washington 
Street,  New  York  City,  and  the  box  which  con- 

143 


144  SABRINA 

tained  the  Goddess  was  stamped  in  several 
places  with  the  stencil,  "  Machinery,  Urgent." 
Arriving  in  New  York  it  was  delivered  to  Hills 
Brothers  in  the  morning,  and  that  afternoon 
Atwater  and  Davis  drove  around  to  the  side 
entrance  of  Hills  Brothers  building  in  the  former's 
Mercer  where  the  crate  containing  Sabrina  was 
loaded  into  the  car.  While  the  two  men  were 
hauling  and  pushing  the  heavy  box,  Frederick 
Bale,  1906,  passed  by.  The  two  men  were  greatly 
alarmed,  for  they  feared  detection,  but  Bale 
passed  by  without  noticing  anything  out  of  the 
way. 

After  this  narrow  escape  the  two  men  set  out 
for  New  Haven.  Soliday  and  Seward  had  made 
arrangements  for  Sabrina  to  be  taken  to  Provi- 
dence by  Atwater  who  was  there  to  meet  a  dele- 
gation of  Odd  Classmen  from  Boston,  after 
which  the  statue  was  to  be  transferred  and  taken 
to  Leominster,  Massachusetts. 

Leaving  New  York  at  about  midnight,  all 
went  well,  and  after  a  few  hours  Atwater  and 
Davis  arrived  with  their  precious  charge  in  Provi- 
dence. Seward  and  Gibson  left  Boston  in  a 
machine  and  arrived  at  the  Crown  Hotel  at 
about  eleven  o'clock  where  they  waited  for  the 
men  from  New  York.  When  the  latter  arrived 
at  the  Crown  they  reported  that  all  had  gone 
well,  that  their  movements  were  not  known  or 


NINETEEN  TWENTY  ONE        145 

suspected  by  Even  Classmen-,  and  that  they 
knew  there  was  no  pursuit  as  they  had  kept  a 
close  watch  upon  the  road  behind  them  coming 
up  from  New  York.  The  men  left  Providence, 
and  a  few  miles  out  of  town  transferred  the 
statue  from  Atwater's  car  to  the  car  which  Se- 
ward  had  hired  in  Boston  for  the  purpose. 
Davis  and  Atwater,  after  bidding  farewell  to  the 
statue,  turned  about  and  started  out  on  their 
long  drive  back  to  New  York.  They  planned  to 
arrive  there  as  soon  as  possible  and  to  be  in  their 
respective  offices  at  the  usual  hour  next  morning, 
thereby  throwing  off  any  suspicion.  The  men 
accompanying  Sabrina  now  started  out  for  Bos- 
ton, where  they  arrived  in  an  hour  and  a  half. 
Here  the  statue  was  left  for  a  few  days  at  the 
home  of  Mr.  Williams,  who  has  been  previously 
mentioned,  while  final  arrangements  for  its  new 
location  were  being  completed.  After  that 
Sabrina  was  taken  by  motor  to  Leominster 
where  a  hiding  place  had  been  prepared  for  her 
in  the  warehouse  of  the  Webster  Piano  Company. 
A  piano  box  had  been  made  ready  and  the  statue 
was  placed  in  this  and  stored  in  an  out-of-the- 
way  corner  of  the  factory  among  other  similar 
cases. 

Plans  now  were  laid  for  the  1921  Banquet. 
Men  from  Amherst  came  down  to  Boston  and 
plans  were  perfected  in  consultation  with  the  Odd 


146  SABRINA 

Classmen  in  Boston  who  had  previously  handled 
the  Goddess.  After  considering  the  various 
factors  entering  into  the  problem  it  was  decided 
that  New  London  was  the  most  advantageous 
point  at  which  to  have  the  Class  Supper  and 
show  Sabrina,  for  it  was  near  the  place  where  the 
statue  was  then  in  hiding,  and  admitted  of  easily 
arranging  for  a  special  train  to  take  the  student 
body  to  the  Banquet.  November  29  was  finally 
decided  upon  as  the  date,  for  it  was  just  after 
the  close  of  the  Thanksgiving  vacation  and  this 
time  seemed  to  be  one  when  Even  Classmen 
might  least  suspect  that  a  banquet  was  to  be 
held. 

Accordingly,  the  manager  of  the  hotel  was 
seen  and  a  menu  was  prepared.  A  special  train 
was  chartered  over  the  Central  Vermont  to 
leave  Amherst  at  6:30  on  the  night  of  the  ban- 
quet. No  notice  was  to  be  given  to  the  Odd 
Classmen  in  college  that  the  affair  was  pending 
until  a  few  hours  before  the  train  was  scheduled 
to  leave. 

It  was  decided  that  Seward,  who  was  in 
Boston,  should  be  given  charge  of  bringing 
Sabrina  to  the  banquet  so  that  it  would  not  be 
necessary  for  any  Odd  Classmen  to  leave  college 
as  the  time  of  the  banquet  approached.  It  was 
feared  that  close  watch  was  being  kept  upon 
certain  men  in  the  class  of  1921,  and  this  move, 


SABRINA   EN   ROUTE 


NINETEEN  TWENTY  ONE        147 

therefore,  seemed  wise.  At  this  time  a  new  hid- 
ing place  was  also  determined  upon  to  take  the 
statue  to  after  its  appearance  at  the  banquet, 
and  all  the  arrangements  of  hiring  cars  to  con- 
vey the  statute  to  New  London  were  to  be  ar- 
ranged from  the  Boston  end. 

Acknowledgment  should  here  be  made  to  the 
services  rendered  by  Mr.  Walker,  manager  of  the 
Mohican  Hotel,  who  entered  into  the  spirit  of  the 
sport  from  the  moment  when  the  intended  ban- 
quet was  first  broached.  He  promised  absolute 
secrecy  and  to  him  was  left  the  matter  of  ar- 
ranging a  place  for  the  statue  to  wait  in  the  hotel 
while  the  banquet  was  in  progress  before  the  time 
appointed  for  the  appearance  of  the  statue. 

On  the  morning  of  November  29,  notification 
was  sent  to  every  Odd  Classmen  to  be  at  the 
Central  Vermont  station  in  Amherst  that  even- 
ing at  6:30,  to  say  nothing  to  anyone  about  the 
matter,  and  to  attract  as  little  attention  as  pos- 
sible in  proceeding  to  the  station.  Schleicher  was 
intrusted  with  the  duty  of  spreading  this  informa- 
tion, and  he  told  a  man  in  each  delegation  of  '21 
and  '23  to  see  to  it  that  the  news  was  properly 
passed.  That  evening  the  men  slipped  away  from 
their  boarding  houses  in  twos  and  threes  and 
after  a  secluded  walk  through  the  town  arrived 
at  the  Central  Vermont  station.  A  roll  call  was 
quietly  taken  and  when  it  was  clear  that  all  the 


148  SABRINA 

men  who  might  be  coming  were  on  hand,  the 
train  was  boarded.  An  Odd  Classman  was 
stationed  at  each  doorway  to  make  sure  that  no 
Even  Classman  made  his  way  into  any  coach 
unseen. 

At  this  point  a  humorous  incident  arose  which 
nearly  prevented  the  Odd  Classmen  from  seeing 
their  Goddess  that  evening.  Those  in  charge  of 
the  banquet  decided  that  they  would  collect  the 
money  to  pay  for  the  special  on  the  train  as  it 
proceeded  to  New  London,  but  these  plans  were 
somewhat  upset  by  the  announcement  of  a  rail- 
road official  that  the  train  would  not  move  unless 
full  payment  was  made  in  advance.  Various 
wiles  were  used  in  an  attempt  to  persuade  the 
conductor  that  his  action  might  lead  to  serious 
and  dire  results,  but  he  remained  firm  in  his 
refusal  to  allow  the  engineer  to  open  the  throttle 
until  his  company  was  paid.  As  this  bill 
amounted  to  something  over  a  thousand  dollars, 
it  appeared  to  be  a  somewhat  large  contract  to 
impose  upon  a  few  men,  and  to  be  fulfilled  on 
such  peremptory  notice.  However,  the  class 
was  canvassed  immediately  and  successfully. 
Some  cash  was  raised  and  the  conductor  was 
finally  persuaded  to  accept  a  check  for  the  bal- 
ance. This  little  matter  having  been  satisfac- 
torily attended  to,  the  men  who  had  been  running 
about  on  the  platform  while  the  collection  was 


NINETEEN  TWENTY  ONE        149 

being  taken  up,  now  got  aboard,  the  engineer 
gave  two  toots  of  his  whistle  and  the  train  was  off. 

Although  the  plans  to  prevent  Even  Classmen 
from  entering  the  train  had  been  well  worked  out 
in  advance,  they  went  astray  somewhat  during 
the  confusion  which  resulted  when  the  con- 
ductor made  his  somewhat  arbitrary  demand. 
In  the  midst  of  the  helter-skelter  which  fol- 
lowed, Theodore  Lemcke,  '22,  who  had  in  some 
way  gotten  wind  of  the  intended  banquet,  had 
come  down  to  the  Central  Vermont  station  and 
managed  to  slip  unnoticed  toward  the  head  of 
the  train,  where  he  crawled  in  between  the  tender 
and  the  first  coach,  and,  biding  his  time,  man- 
aged to  hide  himself  in  the  coal  car.  From  the 
conversation  of  the  conductor  with  the  engineer 
which  he  overheard  by  chance,  he  learned  that 
the  destination  of  this  special  train  was  New 
London,  and  as  the  train  passed  through  a  way- 
station  he  dismounted  from  his  hiding  place  and 
made  his  way  towards  the  ticket  office,  intending 
to  send  a  telegram  to  his  Even  Class  colleagues 
back  in  Amherst  announcing  the  place  at  which 
the  banquet  was  to  be  held. 

Unfortunately  for  Lemcke,  some  of  the  Odd 
Classmen  had  also  alighted  from  the  train  and 
were  strolling  about  the  platform  to  get  a  breath 
of  air.  When  they  noticed  Lemcke  they  promptly 
seized  him,  and  a  search  revealed  a  piece  of  paper 


150  SABRINA 

upon  which  he  had  written,  "  Banquet  in  New 
London.  Will  keep  you  posted.  Signed— 
Lemcke."  If  the  Even  Classman's  appearance 
in  this  out-of-the-way  place  at  this  unusual  time 
had  not  been  sufficient  to  convince  the  Odd 
Classmen  that  Lemcke  was  bent  on  mischief, 
the  finding  of  this  document  was  ample  testi- 
mony, and  Lemcke  was  securely  bound  and  put 
back  on  the  train  under  strong  guard.  It  was 
not  reported  exactly  what  Lemcke  said  at  this 
time,  but  those  who  were  at  the  banquet  are 
under  the  impression  that  his  remarks  were 
highly  uncomplimentary  to  the  character  and 
doings  of  certain  Odd  Classmen. 

The  train  now  resumed  speed  and  arrived 
in  New  London  about  ten  o'clock.  The  men 
proceeded  up  the  streets  of  New  London  to  the 
hotel,  The  Mohican,  singing  loudly  the  song 
which  has  awakened  many  a  quiet  town  in  the 
depths  of  night  with  its  stirring  refrain,  "All 
Hail  Sabrina  Dear."  Lemcke  was  also  escorted 
to  the  banquet,  but  was  not  allowed  to  sing. 
The  men  entered  the  hotel  in  a  body  and  pro- 
ceeded at  once  to  the  banquet  hall  where  they 
waited  around  until  the  time  scheduled  for  the 
banquet  to  begin. 

In  the  meantime,  Seward  had  left  Boston  with 
two  cars  which  had  been  obtained  for  the  pur- 
pose, and  Sabrina  was  taken  from  her  hiding 


NINETEEN   TWENTY  ONE        151 

place  at  Leominster,  and  from  there  taken  to 
Providence.  From  Providence  they  proceeded 
to  New  London  where  they  arrived  about  half 
past  ten  in  the  evening.  The  statue  was  im- 
mediately taken  to  the  Hotel  Mohican  and  was 
kept  here  at  the  rear  door  until  word  was  re- 
ceived from  inside  that  all  was  in  readiness, 
when  it  was  immediately  taken  into  the  ban- 
quet hall. 

Lemcke  was  secreted  in  a  room  of  the  hotel 
which  was  securely  locked,  for  the  Odd  Classmen 
were  not  going  to  take  any  chances  that  the  Even 
Classmen  might  succeed  in  getting  a  clew  as  to 
where  Sabrina  was  to  be  taken  after  the  banquet. 
At  the  given  time  the  men  entered  the  banquet 
hall,  and  just  before  they  were  seated  Sabrina 
was  ushered  into  the  room.  The  Sabrina  song 
was  at  once  struck  up  and  the  men  crowded 
around  to  get  a  glimpse  of  the  Goddess  and  to 
take  advantage  of  their  first  opportunity  to  kiss 
her  fair  lips.  After  vigorous  cheering  for 
Sabrina,  the  men  seated  themselves  at  the  table, 
and  when  they  looked  around  again  for  their 
Goddess,  she  was  gone. 

The  banquet  which  followed  was  altogether  in 
keeping  with  the  spirit  of  the  occasion,  and  the 
speeches  of  the  evening  were  appropriate  and 
timely.  R.  E.  Clarke,  acting  as  toastmaster, 
introduced  David  S.  Soliday,  '19,  who  had  come 


152  SABRINA 

up  from  Philadelphia,  as  the  man  who  should 
be  given  a  just  share  of  credit  for  the  capture  of 
Sabrina  at  the  Boston  Banquet  the  previous 
Winter.  Sabrina  was  then  officially  turned  over 
to  the  class  of  1921  by  Soliday  who  had  been  the 
guardian  of  the  Goddess  for  the  class  of  1919. 

After  her  appearance  at  this  Banquet  Sabrina 
disappeared,  and  those  who  accompanied  her 
have  only  to  report  that  to  the  best  of  their 
knowledge  she  was  not  pursued,  and  was  safely 
placed  in  her  new  hiding  place. 

So  ends  this  present  history  of  Sabrina,  the 
"Lady  of  Many  Adventures."  Who  knows 
what  adventures  are  still  in  store  for  her? 
Probably,  she  will  soon  emerge  from  her  present 
home  and  again  smile  upon  her  worshippers  at 
Amherst.  In  concluding,  the  writers  of  this 
book  find  that  they  cannot  express  their  feeling 
about  the  value  of  the  Sabrina  tradition  in  any 
better  way  than  that  in  which  it  was  presented 
in  an  editorial  in  the  Boston  Herald  soon  after  the 
capture  of  Sabrina  by  Odd  Classmen  in  Boston, 
and  accordingly,  they  re-print  it  here  as  a  fitting 
close  for  this  work. 

SABRINA 

"What  college,  small  or  great,  young  or  old,  in  all  the  land  can 
supply  a  tale  that  matches  the  hectic  history  of  Amherst's  bronze 
goddess?  How  the  Odds  have  schemed  to  take  her  from  the  posses- 
sion of  the  Evens;  how  the  Evens  have  plotted  to  display  her  in  all  her 
glory  to  the  entire  school  and  yet  prevent  her  from  leaving  their 


NINETEEN  TWENTY  ONE        153 

custody.  Names  that  bulk  as  big  in  college  history  as  those  of  the 
redoubtable  heroes  of  the  athletic  fields  have  been  made  by  several 
Amherst  men  whose  ingenuity  and  daring  have  won  for  the  Goddess  a 
new  triumph.  So  curious  have  been  the  tales  about  her  that  thou- 
sands of  college  men  have  supposed  the  whole  yarn  was  a  myth.  Yet 
Sabrina  attended  the  Amherst  dinner  in  this  city  on  one  recent  even- 
ing, and,  after  29  years,  passed  out  of  the  keeping  of  the  classes  with 
even  numerals  into  the  hands  of  the  Odds,  there  to  remain  until  her 
hiding  place  is  discovered,  or  some  clever  scheme  goes  wrong,  and,  as 
was  the  case  the  other  evening,  the  promptness  in  seizing  an  oppor- 
tunity when  it  comes,  shall  again  bring  an  exchange  of  custodians. 

She  is  a  travelled  Goddess.  She  has  been  secreted  under  deep 
waters  and  in  hidden  chambers.  The  glory  of  a  class  responsible  for 
her  safe  keeping  always  has  been  to  exhibit  her  to  the  classes  whose 
supreme  ambition  has  been  to  acquire  possession  of  her,  and  yet  to 
prevent  her  from  falling  into  the  hands  of  the  "enemy."  With  a 
river  between  she  has  been  carried  for  miles  within  sight  of  a  train- 
load  of  students  and  then  whirled  away  to  her  hiding  place.  Last 
year  she  was  hustled  through  the  college  town  itself,  but  as  pre- 
liminary precaution  most  of  the  automobiles  that  might  have  been 
employed  for  pursuit  were  rendered  useless  for  the  time  being.  Now 
at  a  banquet  where  the  Governor  of  the  Commonwealth  and  the 
president  of  the  college  were  speakers  she  makes  her  appearance  only 
to  pass  from  the  guardianship  of  1920  and  1922  into  that  of  1919  and 
1921.  But— the  end  is  not  yet." 


SABRINA  APPEARS  AGAIN 

Since  the  foregoing  history  was  written  Sabrina  has 
once  more  appeared  in  Amherst,  and  the  account  of  the 
showing  serves  as  a  fitting  close  to  this  book. 

It  was  originally  planned  to  bring  Sabrina  before  the 
college  body  at  a  sing,  to  be  held  on  the  senior  fence  di- 
rectly after  church.  Sunday,  May  first,  was  the  day 
chosen.  Very  few  detailed  arrangements  were  made,  as 
it  was  thought  best  to  rely  entirely  on  the  element  of 
surprise  in  carrying  out  the  venture. 

Neiley,  '19,  offered  the  use  of  his  car  to  the  under- 
graduates in  charge  of  the  affair,  and  agreed  to  meet  the 
men  from  college  in  Springfield  at  nine-thirty  Sunday 
morning.  Meanwhile,  the  statue  was  to  be  brought  to 
Springfield.  A  Hudson,  which  belonged  to  a  young  lady, 
at  present  in  Smith  College,  was  to  be  used  for  this  pur- 
pose. When  all  was  ready  the  party  was  to  go  on  to 
Amherst,  arriving  there  shortly  after  twelve  o'clock. 
Sabrina  was  to  pass  before  the  students  assembled  on  the 
Senior  Fence  and  then  to  leave  town  by  the  Greenfield 
Road. 

However,  when  Sunday  dawned  it  was  raining  heavily, 
and  the  plans  were  changed  to  meet  weather  conditions. 

Neiley  and  three  other  '19  men:  Seward,  McGregor 
and  Gibson,  left  Boston  at  five  o'clock  Sunday  morning 
and  set  out  for  Springfield.  The  night  was  dark,  it 
rained  incessantly,  and  as  dawn  broke  the  wind  fell,  and 
there  seemed  to  be  no  chance  of  its  clearing.  The  ride 
to  Worcester  was  cold  and  wet,  and  arriving  there,  the 
men  went  to  the  Bancroft  to  dry  out,  get  breakfast  and 
consider  the  general  situation  once  again. 

154 


SABRINA  APPEARS  AGAIN        155 

There  seemed  to  be  very  little  point  in  going  further. 
If  the  rain  kept  up,  the  appearance  would  be  a  poor  affair 
at  best;  no  one  would  see  Sabrina,  and  it  would  not  be  a 
very  creditable  performance.  Neiley  remarked  that  on 
such  a  day  the  Lady  could  be  taken  through  town  in  a 
wheelbarrow  in  perfect  safety.  Besides  it  was  a  bad  day 
to  ride  sixty  more  miles  in  an  open  car,  and  nobody  looked 
forward  to  it  with  pleasure.  However,  the  men  realized 
that  they  were  somewhat  under  orders,  or  at  least  they 
were  bound  by  their  word  to  be  in  Springfield  that  morn- 
ing, and  there  was  nothing  to  do  but  to  go  on. 

So  the  men  set  out  again  and  arrived  at  their  destina- 
tion half  an  hour  behind  schedule  time.  Nobody  was 
there  to  meet  them,  and  it  looked  very  much  as  if  the  few 
moments  procrastination  in  Worcester  would  have  bad 
results.  These  were  dark  moments.  Imagination 
showed  Sabrina  going  through  Amherst  in  a  single  car, 
followed  by  speedy  vehicles  filled  with  blood  thirsty  Even 
Classmen,  all  bent  on  destruction.  And  it  was  beginning 
to  rain  again. 

Suddenly  a  Hudson  appeared  and  when  it  had  rolled 
up  alongside  of  Neiley's  Mercer,  the  curtains  were  cau- 
tiously poked  aside,  and  the  undergraduates  climbed 
out.  Sabrina  was  safely  tucked  up  in  the  back  seat  of 
the  car. 

The  sing  had  been  called  off,  of  course,  and  it  was  ac- 
cordingly planned  to  show  Sabrina  just  as  church  was 
letting  out.  The  Hudson  went  ahead,  leaving  orders  for 
Neiley  and  the  other  men  to  catch  up  with  them  on  the 
Notch,  where  the  statue  was  to  be  transferred  to  the 
faster  and  heavier  car. 

The  Hudson  was  soon  lost  to  sight,  and  all  went  well 
until  the  Mercer  arrived  on  the  outskirts  of  Holyoke, 
where  a  rumble  and  bumping  announced  that  a  rear  tire 
11 


156  SABRINA 

was  flat.  There  was  no  time  to  change  tires,  so,  drawing 
up  at  a  roadside  gasoline  station,  enough  air  was  pumped 
into  the  defective  tire  to  hold  up  several  cars,  and  the 
men  went  along,  hoping  that  it  wouldn't  blow  out,  or  at 
least  would  last  long  enough  for  the  trick  to  be  accom- 
plished. 

There  was  no  time  to  be  lost  now,  and,  hitting  up  a 
good  rate  of  speed  the  Mercer  at  last  drew  up  abreast  of 
the  Hudson,  just  beyond  the  top  of  the  Notch.  The  top 
of  the  Mercer  was  raised  and  Sabrina  was  lifted  in.  Then, 
taking  the  lead,  it  started  off  towards  Amherst,  followed 
by  the  Hudson. 

As  the  cars  came  into  the  outskirts  of  the  town  they 
were  met  by  other  undergraduates.  In  the  car  with 
Sabrina  now  were  Hatheway,  '21,  Zink,  '21,  Wilcox,  '23 
and  Neiley,  '19,  driving.  In  the  Hudson  following  were 
Schleicher,  '21,  driving.  Disston,  '21,  Clark,  '21,  Seward, 
McGregor  and  Gibson,  '19,  and  Coldrein,  '23,  followed 
along  in  his  machine. 

When  the  two  cars  arrived  in  town,  they  swung  to  the 
right  by  the  octagon,  and  came  to  a  stop  near  the  senior 
fence.  The  campus  was  deserted.  Presently  a  solitary 
freshman,  an  Even  Classman,  strolled  by.  He  looked 
long  and  hard  at  the  two  cars,  but  evidently  their  unusual 
appearance  at  that  hour  conveyed  nothing  to  his  un- 
sophisticated mind,  or  to  his  guilty  conscience,  for  church 
was  still  going  on.  After  this  hectic  moment  the  cars 
circled  the  campus,  and  with  much  tooting  of  horns  and 
shouting  of  directions,  drew  up  in  rear  of  the  church. 

Here  the  covers  were  removed  from  the  statue  and  it 
was  raised  up  in  the  seat  in  full  view.  The  sun  was  just 
coming  out  from  behind  a  thinning  bank  of  clouds,  and 
shone  over  Sabrina: — a  radiant  Goddess  in  a  shining 
chariot,  much  pursued,  much  sought  after,  but  safely 


SABRINA  APPEARS  AGAIN       157 

watched  by  a  jealous  guard,  and  wifchal,  aloof  and  smiling. 

Here  she  remained  for  about  ten  minutes  in  full  view 
of  anyone  who  might  have  come  along.  No  one  came, 
and  presently  the  doors  of  church  opened,  and  the  col- 
lege body  came  streaming  out.  The  sharp  bark  of  a 
motor  broke  their  reverie;  a  few  shouts  brought  their 
wandering  thoughts  back  from  heaven  to  earth,  and  on 
their  astounded  sight  burst  the  Vision  of  Sabrina,  high 
above,  moving  slowly  before  them.  Shouts  rent  the  air. 
"All  Hail  Sabrina"  swelled  to  a  chorus  as  the  Goddess 
slowly  drew  away  from  her  shouting,  running  pursuers, 
and  moved  slowly  off  down  past  the  village  common 
towards  the  Greenfield  road.  Soon  she  was  lost  to  sight. 

But  for  a  moment  only.  Turning  suddenly  about,  the 
Mercer  headed  straight  back  along  the  way  it  had  come, 
and  with  a  roar  of  its  coughing  motor,  dashed  down  the 
road,  past  Alpha  Delta  and  Psi  U,  through  a  lane  of  men 
lining  the  road,  taken  completely  by  surprise,  who  made 
no  effort  to  check  the  rapid  passage.  Then  she  vanished 
down  the  Holyoke  road. 

Thus    Sabrina    appeared,    and    thus    she    vanished. 

Long  Live  Sabrina! 


YC  0 


987139 


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